Bengals Place Franchise Tag on WR Higgins – Tee Higgins will be’ in the jungle’ with the Cincinnati Bengals, one way or another. The first domino of the Bengals’ offseason has fallen.
The Bengals made it official on Monday that they have designated the standout wide receiver as their franchise player, several days after reportedly informing him of their decision. Instead of letting him test free agency which kicks off on March 13, Cincinnati is keeping him in the fold to continue his successful on-field pairing with teammate Ja’Marr Chase. This season, the tag is expected to pay wide receivers a fully guaranteed $21.8 million.
The deadline to use the franchise tag is March 5. Between now and then, the Bengals can still sign Higgins to a long-term extension.
Higgins, a second-round draft pick in 2020 out of Clemson, was set to enter free agency after his rookie contract with Cincinnati expired. In his first four seasons with the team, he hauled in 257 passes for 3,684 yards and 24 touchdowns. In seven postseason games, he has 31 receptions for 457 yards and three scores.
“Tee has done an outstanding job for us since we drafted him in 2020,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said in a statement. “I’m glad that he’ll continue to be a big part of our offense and our team.”
Higgins is coming off the least productive season of his career, mainly due to five games on the shelf with injuries. He posted career lows in catches, receiving yards, touchdowns and targets while catching passes from Joe Burrow and Jake Browning.
Higgins has filled the role of an extremely capable No. 2 wide receiver since the arrival of Ja’Marr Chase, who is entering the fourth season of his rookie deal and will without a shadow of a doubt have his fifth-year option picked up this offseason.
Chase’s looming, out-of-this-world payday, combined with Burrow’s five-year, $275 million contract signed in 2023, which set the NFL record for the highest annual average salary, might cause the Bengals to hesitate paying Higgins top receiver money, which he could likely get on the free market. Still, the team has $51 million in cap space to play with for 2024, per OverTheCap, with only a few significant cap hits in subsequent seasons. Burrow’s salary cap hit will be $46.3 million in 2025, according to Roster Management System.
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Newton Appears to Get in Scuffle in Atlanta – A video surfaced of NFL quarterback Cam Newton being involved in a melee at a 7-on-7 youth football camp on Sunday.
The incident occurred at an invitation-only camp and tournament over the weekend in Atlanta. Authorities affiliated with the local police department have not been contacted for comment by USA TODAY Sports. It has not been determined what started the altercation.
The event was organized by We Ball Sports, an apparel and sports media company, and Newton runs and is the face of C1N, a youth sports organization that sponsored a team in the tournament.
Video shared on social media showed Newton, while wearing one of his trademark hats, being grabbed and scuffling with two or possibly three people before camp staffers and security officers intervened to restore order and make cooler heads prevail.
We Ball Sports’ co-founder, Nehemiah Mitchell, told The Athletic that everyone involved in the altercation, including Newton, was escorted out of the event.
Newton was involved in a fight, a source told The Athletic, with two coaches of TSP (TopShelf Performance), a national 18U 7-on-7 football program. TSP also trains receivers across youth, high school and NFL levels.
“We are deeply concerned about the recent incident involving Cam Newton, and our thoughts are with all parties affected,” TopShelf Performance trainers/coaches Stephon and TJ Brown said in a statement to The Athletic. “Violence has no place in our community, and we strongly condemn any form of aggression.”
Newton’s 15-and-under team won the championship at the event, according to a post by Newton on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Newton, 34 years-of-age, last played in the NFL in the 2021 season, appearing in eight games for the Carolina Panthers.
The 2010 Heisman Trophy winner at Auburn and first overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft, Newton quarterbacked the Panthers for nine of his 10 years as a pro, earning league MVP honors and leading Carolina to the Super Bowl after the 2015 season.
He also played one season in 2020 with the New England Patriots.
