Tee Higgins to Cardinals Makes Too Much Sense

The Arizona Cardinals will need to be especially proactive in free agency due to a lack of capital for the draft.

The available players are perfect for adding depth to positions of need, but there are a handful of studs who can join a team and make a pretty big impact.

No player set to test free agency fits that statement more than Bengals receiver Tee Higgins.

The five-year receiver is set to make some serious money after playing last season on the franchise tag. The Clemson product strung together a marvelous season despite falling short of 1,000 receiving yards.

Now, he is entering the market as arguably the most sought-after player available.

The Cardinals have plenty of cash to spend, which places them in the market for a big-name player like Higgins. Arizona currently has a couple of stud wide receivers on the roster, but they have a need for another guy or two. Higgins’ value is one or two guys and then some.

Fans are daydreaming about adding Higgins to the offense no matter the price, and I’m here to break down why it could be a perfect fit. Let’s look at his profile, fit with the team, and why he makes sense to sign.

Profile

Five years in the league – All with the Bengals
Two 1,000 receiving yard seasons (2021, 2022)
34 career touchdowns

The fit

The Cardinals selected Marvin Harrison Jr with the fourth overall pick in last year’s draft to be their number one receiver. The Ohio State product showed potential to get to that point, but he needs refining and a much more specific role after being asked to do everything as a rookie.

Still, Marvin Harrison Jr. looks and feels like he can still be that guy.

Opposite him is Michael Wilson, who has shown capabilities to be a decent number two across from Harrison and more than good enough to get the job done.

That being said, Arizona needs to add some serious depth to the position, because after Harrison and Wilson there’s not much else that’s notable there. The upcoming draft feels like a great spot to add a role player, but why not get crazy and bring in Higgins?

Higgins would be a drastic upgrade over Wilson after proving himself to be arguably the best WR2 in football across from Ja’Marr Chase. Of course, Higgins has still shown off plenty of talent and upside to be the lead guy in the passing game.

Throwing Higgins into this offense gives the Cardinals one of two outcomes:

A great number two receiver to get Harrison more opportunities
A more-than-capable WR1 that allows Harrison to take some more time to grow

Win/Win.

The logic

The Bengals standout won’t reset the market, but he’s going to be damn expensive. But considering the lack of money currently invested in the position, Arizona could justify spending some coin on upgrading the position.

We also saw last season that the passing game took a hit late in the year with the inability to stretch the field. Harrison was forced into that role but clearly was uncomfortable doing that nearly full time. No other player on the roster, receiver or otherwise has the speed or flat-out ability to be a deep ball target.

Higgins isn’t often thought of as a deep threat with decent speed, but that hasn’t stopped him from being a terrific down-the-field option for Cincinnati.

Higgins has just a single season where he averaged less than 13.6 yards per reception and has a catch of 54-or-more yards in each year except one – those instances came in 2024 where Higgins battled injuries throughout the season.

Even in a “down year” as a downfield threat, Higgins still scored 10 times in 12 games. The 26-year-old simply has a knack for big plays.

Higgins comes to the desert as no worse than WR2 and a chance to establish himself as the top dog, but he also brings the deep ball element to an offense that had no such thing last season.

Day one role

Higgins starts day one on the outside across from Harrison. If I’m being honest, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see Higgins listed ahead of Harrison on the depth chart as the Cardinals’ number one receiver to open the year.

With the experience that Higgins has had and the substantial success he’s compiled in five seasons, there’s plenty of reason to believe he can usurp the entire receiver room and be the number one guy. That’s likely what he wants, too, so everyone is happy.

Like we previously stated, this would allow Harrison to flourish in a number two role and bump Wilson down to WR3. I can’t imagine Harrison will be the WR2 forever, but Wilson sliding into the third spot sounds like a dream come true.

Higgins also vastly upgrades the offense period. He’s a known threat across the league and will demand the attention of opposing defenses. And of course his ability to stretch the field rounds it all out.