New England Patriots wide receiver Kendrick Bourne has been lobbying Cincinnati Bengals star Tee Higgins to join the Pats in free agency after the season. Higgins would be a monster in New England with rookie quarterback Drake Maye who is starting to play really good football.
Kendrick Bourne Tries To Influence Tee Higgins To Sign With Patriots
Bourne, who is friends with Higgins, is working social media to exercise some peer pressure to bring Higgins to Foxboro.
“Aye Tee Higgins if you out there… come to the Pats bro. Drake Maye and Tee Higgins touchdown. Look how good that sounds.”
#Patriots WR Kendrick Bourne sends a message to Tee Higgins on TikTok Live:
“Aye Tee Higgins if you out there… come to the Pats bro. Drake Maye and Tee Higgins touchdown. Look how good that sounds.”
Drake Maye to Tee Higgins Will Feed Families 🍿🔥
— Drake 10 (@DrakesPats) December 24, 2024
Drake Maye to Tee Higgins Will Feed Families
Bourne has found some modicum of success with Maye, a rookie out of North Carolina. The Patriots could use a receiver on the other side to take some pressure off of Bourne, who usually draws the best cornerback from the other team with safety help over the top.
Higgins would fit the bill and provide Maye with another weapon in his arsenal. His contract will expire following the conclusion of this season, in which he’ll become a free agent and explore opportunities with other teams.
Back in March, Higgins requested a trade from the Bengals because he was frustrated that there hadn’t been substantial negotiations about a long-term extension in roughly a year.
The two sides ended up going back and forth prior to the start of the 2024 season, but they weren’t able to reach an agreement on a multi-year contract by the July 15 deadline. Instead, the Bengals used the franchise tag on Higgins, which the wide receiver ultimately signed despite his previous frustration.
The franchise tag is a tool that NFL teams can use to ensure they retain an unrestricted free agent. Teams don’t have to use the franchise tag, and they’re only allowed to use it on one player per season.
If a player signs the franchise tag, their one-year salary is fully guaranteed. As soon as the player signs the tag, his one-year salary cannot be rescinded, even if he’s traded.
Higgins’ 2024 franchise-tag salary is $21.8 million. While he would have understandably preferred to ink a multi-year with the Bengals, it’s worth noting that he’s earning significantly more than he made in 2023 ($2.9 million).
Higgins’ $21.8 million salary makes him the 19th-highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL. It remains to be seen if he and the Bengals can agree to a new contract this offseason or if Cincinnati will decide to use the franchise tag on him once again.
A second franchise tag entitles a player to a 20% increase over their previous year’s salary, so Higgins would earn $26.16 million.
An NFL player can theoretically be franchise-tagged three times (total, not by one team). However, no player has ever been tagged three times, likely because the cost is too steep. If a team uses the franchise tag a third time, the player is due a 44% raise over their previous salary (so $37.76 million in Higgins’ case).