NFL writer pushes for Bills to trade for offensive star after franchise tag

Buffalo named as one team that should consider a tag-and-trade with one of the league's most underrated offensive playmakers

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5). | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Monday's franchise tags may mean some players are locked in with their current teams for next season, but there are names that received the tag who make attractive tag-and-trade candidates.

One is Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, who confirmed that he received the tag yesterday on X. ESPN Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter noted that teams around the league are not 100 percent convinced that he will be wearing black and orange this coming season.

"There are people across the league who believe that this could wind up being a tag and trade," said Schefter on Monday on NFL Live. "Now we don't know whether that will happen."

So what does that mean for the Bills? Some say it's time for them to put pressure on the Bengals for the fifth-year receiver.

NFL writer Alex Kay listed Buffalo as one of the four teams who should still be in on a deal for Higgins.

"Tee Higgins could be the missing piece for a team becoming downright desperate to secure a Super Bowl before its window closes," said Kay on Bleacher Report.

"An Allen-Higgins connection may be exactly what the Bills need to finally become the team to beat in the AFC. The wideout is already on the cusp of breaking out into superstardom while catching passes from Joe Burrow in Cincinnati and could take the next step working with Allen as the focal point of Buffalo's aerial attack."

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) and quarterback Joe Burrow (9). | The Enquirer/Sam Greene / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Higgins has been overshadowed by playing next to Ja'Marr Chase. But make no mistake, he is one of Burrow's favorite targets and has been productive throughout the entirety of his NFL career.

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Aside from an injury-riddled 2023, Higgins has recorded 67 or more catches each season in Cincinnati. He has two career 1,000-yard seasons and is coming off a career-high 10 touchdowns during the 2024 season.

Only time will tell if Higgins is lining up out wide for the Bengals in 2025. But in the meantime, the Bills should be kicking the tires on potentially adding him via trade.

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5). | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

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