NFL Rumors: 4 best tag-and-trade candidates and where they will land

1. Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals

Tee Higgins would be a No. 1 wide receiver on a vast majority of NFL teams, just not the Cincinnati Bengals. However, Higgins hasn’t let that deter him from being a model of consistency and emerging as one of the league’s most dangerous deep threats.

The Bengals became the first team to use the tag this offseason when they placed it on Higgins earlier this year, in hopes of maximizing their time to work out a long-term deal. However, the looming extension of teammate and fellow star receiver Ja’Marr Chase has complicated matters for the 2020 second-round pick.

With Higgins’ contractual status beyond 2024 currently in limbo, it presents an opportunity for another team to acquire a dynamic wide receiver entering his age-25 season via the tag-and-trade market.

Perhaps the most receiver-needy team entering this offseason is the New England Patriots. Led by veterans JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kendrick Bourne, the Pats boasted arguably the league’s worst pass-catching group in 2023. 

Signs point towards New England addressing the quarterback position via the draft and/or free agency after the struggles of Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe, so what better way to help a newcomer than to provide him with a talented wide receiver who can make his life easier?

Considering the Pats cap space situation (third-most entering league year), Higgins to New England is an ideal landing spot where he can secure a payday and a bigger role within the team’s offense.

Landing spot: New England Patriots