Cincinnati Bengals Utilize Franchise Tag to Retain Tee Higgins and Other Top Players

NFL teams can now place franchise tags to retain top talent approaching free agency, and the first to use it were the Cincinnati Bengals.

The AFC North team decided to retain wide receiver Tee Higgins by using the franchise tag. This means that the Clemson University graduate will receive a base salary of $21.86 million in 2024.

With this salary, Higgins will be the Bengals’ second-highest-paid player in 2024 In terms of total cash, according to Spotrac, only behind the 65.7 million that Joe Burrow will receive.

The decision by Cincinnati management is surprising since the wide receiver only played in 11 games last year due to a rib fracture coupled with hamstring and ankle injuries. Despite his limited time, he managed to catch 42 passes from Burrow and generate 656 yards with five touchdowns.

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Other Bengals players who have received the franchise tag

The Bengals were founded in 1968 and the franchise tag was established in 1993, in the fourth collective bargaining agreement of the NFL and NFLPA. Since then, the Ohio franchise has used it nine times.

The first time was with defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson, who received a $3 million offer in 1998. After 15 days of signing the tag, the Ohio State graduate was traded to the Washington Redskins for a first-round pick and a third-round pick from that year’s Draft.

Higgins is the third WR in Cincinnati history to receive the franchise tag. The first was Carl Pickens (1999, 3.5 million dollars) and the second was AJ Green (2020, 18.1 million dollars).

Defensive linemen usually leave a good taste in the mouth in Cincinnati and both Justin Smith (2007, 8.6 million) and Michael Johnson (2013, 11.2 million) were retained due to their great performance.

Stacy Andrews took charge of the right side of the offensive line that Carson Palmer protected frequently during 2007 and that led to the Bengals rewarding him with a $7.5 million franchise tag to stay with them in 2008.

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It’s unusual for a kicker to receive the tag, but the Bengals have done it twice. In 2009 with Shayne Graham (2.5 million dollars) and in 2012 with Mike Nugent (2.7 million dollars).

The last to be tagged was safety Jessie Bates, who now plays for the Atlanta Falcons. The defensive back received $12.9 million to play with the Bengals in 2022 and then received a salary increase by accepting a four-year, $64 million offer.

2024-02-24 21:47:02
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