Wide Receiver Tee Higgins Now Seeking Trade From Browns Division Rival
Deshaun Watson's dream is still in play according to reports from Monday.
NFL Insider Adam Schefter of ESPN was the first to report that Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins has officially requested a trade out of Cincinnati. The request comes after the Bengals placed their franchise tag on the 25-year-old, with the hope of retaining their dynamic duo of wideouts featuring Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase together.
According to Schefter though, Higgins is displeased with the lack of serious extension talks from the franchise despite wanting to stay in Cincinnati.
Before Higgins was tagged by the Bengals, Watson had Browns fans envisioning him wearing a different shade of orange after making a public plea for his fellow Clemson Tiger to join him in Cleveland on his podcast. That dream was erased when Higgins was slapped with the franchise tag though, with the indication being he'd work out a long-term extension with the club.
Instead, it appears he has his sights set on a new home. Over the weekend, Cleveland addressed their WR need by coming to terms of a trade with the Broncos to acquire wide receiver Jerry Jeudy for fifth and sixth round picks in this year's draft. That likely takes them out of the Higgins sweepstakes unless they have larger plans in store for the position.
Regardless, convincing the Bengals to send Higgins to a division rival would be a major hurdle in its own right.
Higgins is coming off of a down year that was derailed by injuries. Appearing in only 12 games, he caught a career low 42 passes for a career low 656 yards. Over the previous two seasons Higgins was top 20 in the league in receiving posting over 1,000 yards in each campaign. He found the end zone 19 times in his first three seasons but jut five times in 2023.
The days and weeks ahead will be telling in regards to what the future holds for Higgins. There's always a chance cooler heads prevail and he finds a way to mend fences with Cincy. Or he could find himself playing elsewhere next year, leaving one less wide receiver for the Browns to game plan against next year.
