The Cincinnati Bengals’ wide receiver room has a future that is in question, but the recent contract given to star wide receiver DeVonta Smith by the Philadelphia Eagles could provide insight into what might happen next.
Smith was given a $75 million contract extension that will have him playing for the Eagles through 2028. According to NFL insider Adam Schefter, Smith is guaranteed $51 million by the contract. The Eagles are now paying two high-level wide receivers along with an elite quarterback.
How can the Philadelphia Eagles afford to pay two top-tier WRs along with an elite QB and an elite RB?
While the Cincinnati Bengals are struggling to decide if they can pay star wide receivers Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase along with elite quarterback Joe Burrow, the Philadelphia Eagles have done something very similar.
Not only have the Eagles paid elite wide receivers DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown, but they’ve also paid quarterback Jalen Hurts and running back Saquon Barkley. The Bengals starting running back, Zack Moss, has an extremely team-friendly deal when compared to Barkley. In an article from ESPN, Philadelphia Eagles CEO Jeffrey Lurie explained why he shelled out the extra cash for Barkley.
“You have to be a great passing attack running back as well. For us it’s got to be multifunctional,” CEO Jeffrey Lurie said of Barkley in March. “And he exhibited a very special skill set both in the running and the passing game that we think certainly can be maximized by being on a team with better skill positions, quarterback, offensive line.”
According to Spotrac, Burrow’s contract is a five-year contract worth $275 million while Hurts’ contract is a five-year contract worth $255 million. Brown’s four-year contract is worth $100 million and Barkley’s contract three-year contract is worth $37 million.
Neither of the Bengals’ wide receivers have received a contract, but running back Zack Moss’s two-year contract is worth just $8 million.
Can the Cincinnati Bengals do something similar to the Philadelphia Eagles, but with Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase?
Although he has yet to sign a new contract, star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is expected to be one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the NFL.
A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles is currently the fourth-highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL as he rakes in $25 million a year. Smith’s three-year, $75 million contract will put him in the same place as Brown, making an average of $25 million a year.
The highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL is Tyreek Hill of the Miami Dolphins who makes $30 million a year on a four-year, $120 million contract. If Chase ends up making as much as Hill, Higgins would need to take a deal for $20 million a year for the wide receiver contracts to account for the same amount per year, on average.
Cap hits and team-friendly deals could make this more feasible for the Cincinnati Bengals
This doesn’t account for the actual cap hits for the contracts. While Burrow’s contract averages out to $55 million a year, the cap hit for 2024 is $29 million. Hurts’ cap hit for 2024 is just $13 million, despite his contract averaging out to $51 million per year.
While the numbers are a little bit different, the Eagles have shown it’s possible to pay two wide receivers and a quarterback at the same time. The Eagles are spending a little less on a quarterback, but a lot more on a running back.
If Bengals players decide to strategically plan out their cap hits in a way that would help the team, that could go a long way in ensuring they all get what they are worth.
That being said, both the Bengals wide receivers could end up being worth more than both of the Eagles’ wide receivers, which would make paying both of them more difficult. It is hard to say how the Bengals will be able to pull this off without knowing the exact markets for both of their wide receivers.
In one less NFL season, DeVonta Smith is just over 500 yards and five touchdowns back from Tee Higgins’ career numbers. Due to injuries, four seasons for Higgins means 58 games. Smith has only missed one game in his Eagles career, meaning he’s played in 50 games.
Statistically, they are the same tier of wide receiver. The one thing Smith certainly has over Higgins is his ability to stay healthy, which is imperative if the Bengals want to make a Super Bowl run. The Bengals are currently paying Higgins $21 million as they have decided to keep him around for a year with the franchise tag.
Despite Higgins requesting a trade, he said at a youth football camp that he plans on playing for the Bengals in 2024.
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