NFL Exec: Joe Burrow 'Putting the Hammer on' Bengals with Chase, Higgins Contracts

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow doesn't want to lose his top two targets to free agency, and he is reportedly doing what he can to convince the team to keep both Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

"He is putting the hammer on them," an NFL executive said in a Monday story by Mike Sando of The Athletic.

Higgins is scheduled for free agency this offseason after playing the 2024 campaign on the franchise tag, while Chase has one year remaining on his deal. While Burrow signed a five-year, $275 million contract extension in 2023, he has publicly said he is willing to restructure his deal to help keep the wide receivers in Cincinnati.

"I'm of the thought that when he decided not to make an Eli Manning situation with Cincinnati in the draft, that he had talks beforehand about how they were going to proceed with player acquisition," another executive said, per Sando. "And now it is to the point where they have to hold up their end of the bargain."

Former Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer famously demanded a trade from Cincinnati during his career, but one executive said the situation is different with Burrow.

"Carson got hurt in a playoff game, but Joe got them to the Super Bowl," the exec said. "That carries a lot of weight going forward. The issue is going to be, will they spend money elsewhere, at a level necessary to keep guys? I think that this time they might. I'm not saying they will have a wholesale change in their philosophy. Joe has the leverage to have them do something that they might not have wanted to do."

Committing to Burrow in 2023 the way the Bengals did and then not spending to keep his top two receivers would undercut the team-building process for a franchise looking to take the next step as a contender.

Cincinnati made the Super Bowl during the 2021 campaign and reached the AFC Championship Game the following year with the star quarterback leading the way. Even its down seasons in 2023 and 2024 saw it finish with a winning record of 9-8 in large part because of the brilliance of Burrow, Chase and the passing game.

Chase in particular was unstoppable this past season and led the NFL in catches (127), receiving yards (1,708) and touchdown catches (17). Higgins had back-to-back seasons with more than 1,000 receiving yards in 2021 and 2022 and set a career-high with touchdown catches (10) in 2024.

Both receivers and Burrow are in their 20s, so it is not difficult to envision the trio leading the Bengals for years to come.

But first the front office has to commit to paying the necessary contracts to keep the pass-catchers in town.