Did Bengals make an enemy out of Tee Higgins with latest contract drama?

Something was bound to happen when it came to the Tee Higgins contract saga. The fifth-year pro out of Clemson ultimately signed his franchise tag to play for the Cincinnati Bengals this season. This one-year deal makes him one of the highest paid receivers in the game for this year, but we have to wonder if he will harbor any animosity for the Bengals not giving him the long-term deal he wanted.

To put it simply, the Bengals do things differently. Always have, and probably always will. Prior to Joe Burrow becoming a mega star in the NFL, the Bengals were arguably the cheapest franchise in the league, thanks in large part to penny-pinching owner Mike Brown, who is firmly in his 80s. Cincinnati has made great strides in recent years to join the rest of the league, but are so far from innovators.

Regardless, here is a quote from Bengals head coach Zac Taylor on how happy he is to have Higgins.

"I'm excited to move forward with Tee. He's done a great job handling his situation, and we are happy to get him back in the fold so we can start working toward a great 2024 season. The locker room will be excited to have him back around."

As it is with anything, nothing is as it seems. You would think the Bengals' reluctance to give Higgins a contract extension may have rubbed him the wrong way. Then again, he has been a part of this organization for four, going on five years. This is how they do it. Cincinnati has been pretty straight forward about its plans for Higgins. They do have a great general manager in Duke Tobin as well...

Now that Higgins has signed his franchise tag, he and the Bengals can move forward into this season.

Will Tee Higgins want to play for the Cincinnati Bengals beyond this year?

For my money, any potential staying power Higgins has with the Bengals hinges entirely on his productivity this year, as well as how much he enjoys playing in Cincinnati. If he produces, that could either price him out of Cincinnati, or give the Bengals all the more reason to move off him after a down season. Frankly, it will mostly come down to his rapport with Burrow, Taylor and Ja'Marr Chase.

For as long as the Bengals want to remain playoff viable, that trio will be the cornerstones of the team. Higgins could be a fourth pillar in that, but keep in mind that Brian Callahan is no longer their offensive coordinator and Tyler Boyd is no longer part of the Bengals receiving corps. Boyd followed Callahan to Nashville to be part of his Tennessee Titans rebuild. Guess who hails from The Volunteer State???

It may really come down to if Higgins is more of a Taylor guy or a Callahan guy in the end. Heck, he could conceivably follow defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo to another NFL team with a head-coaching opportunity, as he is so long overdue from getting his shot to run a team. Money may be a deciding factor for Higgins next spring, but his role with the Bengals just got even more important.

If he plays up to his potential and balls out, we may see Higgins get that Bengals extension he wants.