Bengals' Tee Higgins Deal Gains Value After Latest Star Wide Receiver Contract Extension

Cincinnati just got a little more value on its deal with Tee Higgins entering the 2026 NFL Season. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Thursday that the Saints are signing top wide receiver Chris Olave to a four-year contract extension worth up to $132 million with $90 million guaranteed.

Olave and Higgins are pretty comparable talents so far in their NFL careers, with a slight edge to Higgins for overall production and efficiency.

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Jul 29, 2026; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) catches a pass during training camp at Kettering Health Practice Fields. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Yet, Higgins is now getting paid less on average than Olave and guaranteed way less money ($40.9 million guaranteed for Higgins)

Olave has been searching for this for a while, and, according to Spotrac, is now making $2.25 million more per season on average than Higgins. Olave ranks 10th in WR contract average while Higgins ranks 13th.

"The contract is a whole different side of the game. It's the business side. I feel like we're going to come down to that before training camp. I hope we do so we don't affect the chemistry and stuff going into training camp, but I think it's going to get done soon," Olave said during the Saints' OTAs window this past spring.

It's hard to separate them production-wise, yet Higgins is on a way shakier guaranteed deal, and a hair less paid per year overall.

Higgins has played two more seasons than Olave, entering the league in 2020 to Olave's 2022 entrance, but still has been way more productive. He has a 48 Pro Football Reference Approximate Value to Olave's 29 mark, and his quarterbacks have been far more efficient when passing to him (115.1 passer rating when targeted to Olave's 90.1 mark).

Higgins also beat him out in Pro Football Focus grading last season (Higgins ranked 17th among WRs with 50-plus targets as he tallied an 80.1 grade to Olave's 78 mark).

Health has been an issue for both as well, but Olave got the way higher guaranteed figure. Neither player has played 65% of the possible offensive snaps in their career, but Olave's been more banged up with his head injuries over the years (59.3% career snap rate to Higgins' 64.2%).

It's nothing to worry about right now with Higgins under contract until 2028, but it just shows how lucky Cincinnati got to reel in a Bengals fan that was willing to make some guaranteed money sacrifices to play with Ja'Marr Chase and the rest of his buddies.

"I grew up a Bengals fan, and to have the opportunity to sign a four-year deal with my favorite team that I grew up watching, that's a dream come true," Higgins said after signing last March. "And then once the announcement was out, my favorite player I grew up watching [Chad Johnson] congratulating me on that is even crazier, so I couldn't be in a better place."

Cincinnati has a nice discount on its books with its second-best wide receiver.

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