Cincinnati Bengals Can't Let Tee Higgins Hit Free Agency, Must Keep Core Four Together

What should the Bengals do with Tee Higgins? Should they sign him to a long-term contract? Let him walk in free agency? Maybe a tag and trade?

Higgins' future is arguably the biggest offseason question facing the team.

Joe Burrow believes the answer is crystal clear.

"Tee is a need, yes,” Burrow said last month. "I know that I'm gonna do what it takes to get him back, and so is he. We've had those talks. Those are gonna be offseason discussions, but we're excited about that opportunity."

Burrow is right.

Higgins is going to be No. 1 on a lot of upcoming free agent lists. It's one of the many reasons why the Bengals should never let him get to free agency.

Letting your best players leave doesn't help the team win. It's a simple concept, but it has to be said. Higgins is easily the fourth-best player on the roster.

The 25-year-old switched agents midseason. He's represented by Rocky Arceneaux—the same agent that Ja'Marr Chase has been with for the past four seasons. Negotiating with Arceneaux is expected to be much more reasonable moving forward.

The stage is set for Higgins to get a long-term deal with the Bengals.

So why shouldn't he make it to free agency? The answer is simple.

The Bengals can sign Higgins to a contract extension at any time. He isn't under contract for next season like Trey Hendrickson or Chase.

Even if they can't get a long-term deal done between now and free agency, they can use the franchise tag on Higgins for a second-straight season.

Tagging Higgins for $26.1 million would give them more time to work out long-term deals with their trio of stars.

The Bengals' No. 1 offseason priority should be keeping their core four intact. Burrow is under contract. Chase and Hendrickson need long-term extensions.

Higgins is set to become a free agent. He won't be thrilled to get tagged again, but as long as the Bengals make it clear that they're doing it with a long-term extension in mind, it shouldn't be an issue.

Here's the bottom line: Higgins should never become a free agent.

He wants to be in Cincinnati. Burrow and Chase want him in Cincinnati. The Bengals are much better with him than without him.

Higgins finished with a career-high 10 touchdowns this season, despite missing five games. Is his health a concern? Sure. But that wouldn't stop the Patriots, Chargers, Titans, Jaguars and a plethora of other teams from signing him in free agency.

“He's very important,” Burrow said. “It's not even just his production, it's his presence. It's how he comes to work every day, how the defenses have to play us when he's out there. Tee plays such a big part in what we do here and has for five years now.

“I don't think you can quite put a value on that.”

The Bengals have the resources—cap space, ability to restructure, etc—to keep their core four together and improve the team in other key areas.

The Bengals currently have roughly $50 million in cap space, but that number could jump to $90 million with some obvious cuts. They could clear even more room (up to $21 million) by restructuring Burrow's contract.

Higgins should be a Bengal in 2025 and beyond. He shouldn't even touch free agency.

That should be the expectation, not the hope, going into a crucial offseason for the Bengals.