The Cincinnati Bengals have officially used the franchise tag on star wide receiver Tee Higgins for a second consecutive season. Now what?
Tagging Higgins was just the first domino in a long line of moves and decisions that the Bengals will have to make over the offseason, with some being more urgent than others. With free agency set to begin in a matter of days, let's look at the next two moves that the Bengals might make after putting the tag on Higgins.
Release Sam Hubbard to open more cap space
Sometimes in football, difficult decisions need to be made, and Cincinnati parting ways with Sam Hubbard would fall into that category. But difficult doesn't necessarily mean dumb. In this particular situation, it would probably mean the opposite.
Hubbard had a rough season in 2024, and his numbers were down across the board. He had just 41 total tackles, which is his lowest total since his rookie season, when he didn't start a single game. His two sacks also tied a career-low.
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At 29, Hubbard's best playing days might already be behind him, and the Bengals would save over $9 million in salary cap space if they release him this offseason. The team desperately needs that cap space to work on long-term deals for Higgins, Ja'Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson.
Sheldon Rankins and Alex Cappa were already cap casualties for Cincinnati this offseason. Hubbard could be next.
Re-sign Mike Gesicki to a multi-year deal
The Bengals were very happy with what they saw from Mike Gesicki in 2024. The tight end signed a one-year deal with Cincinnati last offseason, and he turned in a productive campaign. Gesicki caught 65 passes for 665 yards and two touchdowns in 17 games. He also established himself as a favorite target of star quarterback Joe Burrow in the process.
Gesicki is headed for free agency again this offseason, but that won't happen if the Bengals re-sign him before he hits the open market, which is exactly what they might look to do.
Chase still has one year remaining on his current contract, and Higgins is now under team control for another year, at least, so there's not technically an immediate rush for the team to get extensions done with those guys. Gesicki though, could be free to sign elsewhere in a matter of days, which is why re-signing him could be one of Cincinnati's next moves.