Joe Burrow has repeatedly stressed the importance of the Bengals re-signing both Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. The Bengals' quarterback has gotten his wish as the team has come to terms with both star wide receivers, with Chase landing a record-setting contract.
Chase has agreed to a four-year, $161 million deal that includes $112 million guaranteed, according to multiple reports. Chase essentially confirmed the news when he quoted a report with a handshake emoji on social media. Higgins posted the same emoji on social media shortly after the deals were reported.
Meanwhile, the Bengals' official X accounted posted an image of the two pass catchers, seemingly confirming the news.
The deal makes Chase the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. That distinction was held shortly by Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett, who recently signed a four-year, $160 million extension.
Higgins has agreed to a four year, $115 million deal (including the first two years fully guaranteed), after playing the 2024 season under the franchise tag. The Bengals recently applied the franchise tag on him again with the intent of working toward a long-term deal.
Teammates since 2021, Chase and Higgins have become arguably the NFL's top receiving duo over that span.
A 2021 first-round pick, Chase is coming off a 2024 season that saw him become the fifth player since the league merger to lead the NFL in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown receptions. Chase's 46 touchdown catches since 2021 are the most in the NFL over that span.
A 2020 second-round pick, Higgins has two 1,000-yard receiving seasons under his belt. Higgins was integral to the Bengals' 2021 Super Bowl run; he caught 18 passes for 309 yards during that year's postseason, which included four catches for 100 yards in Cincinnati's Super Bowl loss to the Rams.
Along with Chase and Higgins, the Bengals also recently granted one of Burrow's other wishes by re-signing tight end Mike Gesicki to a three-year, $25.5 million deal. These signings are reinforcement that the Bengals are committed toward maximizing Burrow's prime years following two non-playoff seasons.
The re-signings of Chase and Higgins makes the Bengals a legitimate threat to compete for AFC supremacy in 2025, assuming their defense bounces back after being historically bad during Cincinnati's 4-8 start in 2024.
Speaking of defense, the Bengals are currently trying to figure out what to do with pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, who was recently granted permission to seek a trade partner. The NFL's leader with 17.5 sacks last season, Hendrickson wants to remain in Cincinnati, but he is also looking for a significant pay raise. It'll be interesting to see if the Bengals can work similar magic with Hendrickson as they did for Chase and Higgins. According to NFL Media, the sides have been in contact recently.