The Cincinnati Bengals face a critical juncture before they play their first regular season game against the Cleveland Browns. They have several high-performing players in line for contract extensions led by superstar quarterback Joe Burrow. The most important issue that should alleviate the concern of Bengals fans is that Cincinnati is in fantastic health from a cap perspective. Even after extending pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, over the cap had the Bengals with $19.5 million in cap space as of this writing. This gives the Bengals tremendous flexibility to work on the big three of their 2020 draft class in Burrow, Tee Higgins, and Logan Wilson before September 10th. Let’s take a look at where things currently stand and the inherent issues ahead to keep Cincinnati competitive for years to come.
The Cincinnati Bengals Player Contracts Conundrum
Joe Burrow
The biggest domino fell in extending Burrow when the Los Angeles Chargers locked up Justin Herbert to a long-term deal last week with a five-year, $262.5 million contract including $133.7 million fully guaranteed and injury protection of $193.7 million. This potentially gave the Bengals the floor in the framework for a Burrow second contract and as NFL insider, Adam Schefter, said, the Brinks truck is coming to Cincinnati.
The Brinks truck is already on its way to Cincinnati for Joe Burrow? 💰🤑
“Joe Burrow is expected to become the highest paid player in NFL history. … I can promise you the numbers are gonna be well north of [Justin Herbert’s].” —@AdamSchefter pic.twitter.com/9gLhDSdXp4
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) July 26, 2023
The Bengals have never shied away from paying franchise quarterbacks big money in their history. Team owner, Mike Brown signed both Andy Dalton and Carson Palmer to over-market deals when the time came. Burrow is a true outlier for the Bengals, and even though he stated “I’m confident we’ll be able to keep everybody” his contract structure will be fascinating given the fact the front office is hesitant when it comes to guaranteed dollars. Cincinnati seems to be changing its stripes regarding how they operate with the Joe Mixon restructure and added money for Hendrickson in the middle of a current deal.
Tee Higgins
The Robin of the Bengals receiving trio is in the final year of his rookie deal and will garner a huge pay raise that mirrors the true number one he is. Higgins has been outstanding for the Bengals in his first, three seasons with 3028 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns. He is a jump ball machine with great length that can beat you in a multitude of ways. NFL cap experts from PFF Brad Spielberger and Timo Riske surmised that a Higgins extension could look like four years, $97 million ($24.25 million per year), $32.25 million guaranteed. The Bengals would be wise to re-up Higgins at these figures and have his services with Burrow in his prime.
Logan Wilson
The often-forgotten player in the Bengals contract carousel is linebacker Logan Wilson. The Wyoming standout has been a linchpin in the Bengals defense since he arrived in Cincinnati. Wilson has played in 40 games with 163 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and since 2020, has led all NFL linebackers in interceptions. Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo’s group has been equally instrumental as the Bengals offense in the team’s success the last two years. Much like his 2020 draftmates, it would be smart for Cincinnati to re-sign Wilson sooner rather than later. The cost of business is only going up, and the bill is rapidly coming due.
Main Photo: Sam Greene/The Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK
