NFL rumors: Tee Higgins labeled as Bengals trade candidate before deadline

Will Tee Higgins be in Cincinnati after the NFL Trade Deadline?

With the NFL Trade Deadline less than two weeks away, the rumor mill is starting to churn and teams are beginning to position themselves as either buyers or sellers. But that distinction isn't so clear for every team around the league. Take for example the 3-4 Cincinnati Bengals, who find themselves in a spot where they could conceivably be either. However, given the predicament they find themselves in with wide receiver Tee Higgins, it's possible that their hand could end up being forced.

After two consecutive off-seasons in which they failed to sign Tee Higgins to a long-term deal, the Bengals placed the franchise tag on their 25-year-old wideout, and as a result, Higgins requested a trade. Now, six months after the whole ordeal began, it appears as if the Bengals and Higgins are still heading toward a break-up in 2025, which could open the door for Cincinnati to look for a deal for their second-leading receiver.

“Teams have had interest in Tee Higgins, but with Cincy still a playoff contender, shipping him out is questionable,” writes ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler. However, fellow ESPN insider Ben Baby provides a differing perspective:

“The Bengals haven't been able to sign Higgins during each of the past two off-seasons and put the franchise tag on him for 2024,” Baby writes. “After sitting out the first two games of the season because of a hamstring injury, he now has 341 receiving yards, three touchdowns and zero drops on 44 targets. Cincinnati can't afford to pay him and Ja'Marr Chase, so it makes sense to get something of value for Higgins if the Bengals aren't going to be a championship contender this season.”

ESPN gives the Bengals a 37.4% chance to make the Playoffs, the 9th-best odds in the AFC. Frankly, this feels low for a team that has made the AFC Championship Game in each of Joe Burrow's two fully healthy seasons in Cincinnati. Sure, the Bengals already have four losses to their name, but three of those four losses — Kansas City, Washington and Baltimore — have come to division leaders. And with ten games left to play, there is more than enough time for the Bengals to improve their postseason chances.

Will Bengals hang onto Tee Higgins past trade deadline? 

By the numbers, Cincinnati's playoff chances are slim as is, and one would assume that if the Bengals were to trade Tee Higgins away at the trade deadline, their postseason odds would only go down. That's because besides Ja'Marr Chase, who leads the NFL in both receiving yards and touchdowns through seven weeks, Higgins is the only other Bengals pass-catcher with more than 25 targets and over 200 yards receiving.

Moving Tee Higgins means that the Bengals would rely even more on Ja'Marr Chase, who is already on pace for over 1,500 receiving yards this season, as well as an unheralded group of pass-catchers that consists of Andrei Iosivas (14 receptions, 189 yards, 3 touchdowns), Mike Geisicki (18 receptions, 180 yards) and Erick All (16 receptions, 102 yards).