Ja’Marr Chase contract update only makes Bengals’ Tee Higgins saga more difficult

Is there a more frustrating team in the NFL than the Cincinnati Bengals? Probably not.

Joe Burrow should've won MVP this season. He was the best quarterback in the league, hands down, throwing for 4,918 yards and 43 touchdowns in one of the most majestic displays of talent in recent NFL history. So, why didn't he? Because the Bengals won nine games and missed the playoffs — their second straight season toiling haplessly in the middle of the AFC pack.

There's really no excuse for how the Bengals' roster has crumbled around Burrow. It's never easy to build around a $275 million contract, but it's not like Burrow is the only quarterback to get paid. That is the nature of today's NFL: There is not a more valuable asset than a star quarterback, and Burrow ranks among the very best. He has earned every penny. It's up to Duke Tobin and the rest of the Bengals front office to engineer a competitive roster around Burrow's titanic cap hold.

So far, Cincy has struggled to do so. Other factors have gotten in the Bengals' way, such as injuries and coaching changes, but we can't exactly blame the departure of OC Brian Callahan for what transpired last season. Burrow threw for almost 5,000 yards, after all, and Cincy has proven that it can trade points with any team. It's the defense that fell apart.

Now comes a new challenge — a potentially catastrophic crossroads that we plainly cannot trust Tobin and Cincy's brass to navigate. The Bengals need to pay their guys. Burrow has begged them to at every turn. And yet, Cincinnati does not seem equipped to hand out all the money this deeply flawed roster will command.

Ja'Marr Chase might price Bengals out of long-term Tee Higgins arrangement

Cincinnati has already used the franchise tag on Tee Higgins for a second straight season. Higgins will get a nice chunk of change in 2025, but his future beyond this season is murkier than ever. Will the Bengals trade him, extend him, or let him walk? Right now, the middle option feels the least likely — especially with Ja'Marr Chase in line for a big-money contract of his own.

If the Bengals are "forced" to choose between their star wideouts, there's no real competition. Chase is Burrow's favorite target and quite possibly the best wide receiver in football. The Bengals need to play defense one of these days, but there's a certain baked-in credibility when rostering Burrow and Chase. That team will always have a chance to make noise.

Burrow has pleaded with Cincinnati to deploy the Eagles' strategy of expert cap manipulation and an admirable "screw it, pay everybody" mentality. The Bengals just aren't going to comply, though. There will be hard cuts made. Just know that Chase will not be among them.

"We’re going to reward Ja’Marr," Tobin told reporters on Tuesday. He plans to make Chase the highest-paid non-QB in the NFL.

Justin Jefferson is currently the highest-paid non-quarterback in terms of annual salary ($35 million). The largest overall non-quarterback contract belongs to Nick Bosa, who received five years and $170 million ($34 million annually) from San Francisco.

If the Bengals give Chase five years and north of $35 million annually, that will break new ground in the history of NFL salaries. It will also signal immense faith in the Burrow-Chase duo, no matter the shape of the roster around them. I'd be a bit worried about paying Burrow and Chase almost $100 million combined annually just to win nine games every season, but Cincy doesn't have a choice. You can't let a 24-year-old with Chase's track record and athletic tools out the building, especially when he's so close with your megastar quarterback.

We can probably rule out a four- or five-year commitment for Higgins as a result, but hey — other NFL teams will gladly take up Cincy's slack in that department. If he gets put on the trade market, the Bengals should be able to recoup meaningful value for their "other" star wideout.