Can early franchise tag mean a Tee Higgins trade is coming?

Dec 23, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) warms up with tennis balls before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Cincinnati Bengals have informed wideout Tee Higgins that he will receive the franchise tag.

That late Friday news dump delivered expected news — but somewhat earlier than expected.

The Bengals had until March 5 to apply the tag and conventional wisdom seemed to suggest there wasn’t a reason for them to rush applying it.

Unless something happened during negotiations on a contract extension, we can’t be privy to, or the front office wants to tell teams that they’re open for business.

It’s pretty hard to imagine the Bengals would steer away from their conservative nature and not fully use that additional year of control to keep Higgins with Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase for another championship push.

But the early tag does finalize things. It leaves other teams no doubt about where things are headed — and it just so happens to arrive well before the scouting combine next week, where Bengals brass will attend and brush shoulders with the front offices of 31 other teams.

The mechanics of a tag and trade are complicated but boil down to this — other teams can make offers and the Bengals can accept. But only if he’s actually signed the tag, which he doesn’t have to, especially if he doesn’t like the trade destination. If he does sign, the $21.8 million chunks out of their cap space right away, which impacts free agency.

Tag and trades are extremely rare, with Davante Adams fetching the Packers first and second-round picks from the Raiders a recent example, but Higgins isn’t going to net the Bengals that sort of return after struggling to stay healthy and a very strong draft class coming up.

That doesn’t mean a tag and trade won’t happen, especially with the timing here so interesting. But now that the tag is (or has been informed, at least) applied, both sides have until July 15 to reach an extension.

So, while a trade can happen, the early tag shouldn’t knock fans off the expectation that Higgins will be back in Cincinnati for at least one more year. It still very much feels like the Jessie Bates situation (and even features the same agent), Joe Burrow wants him back and it’s just smart business to lean into the tag while keeping the contention window open, provided a world-class offer doesn’t hit Cincinnati’s desk at the combine soon.

This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Can early franchise tag mean a Tee Higgins trade is coming?