Joe Burrow is coming off the best season of his career, but unfortunately, it did not translate to his team’s success. The Cincinnati Bengals finished with a record of 9-8 and missed the playoffs for the second straight season.
The Bengals have only made the postseason in two of the five seasons since drafting Burrow, and the franchise now finds itself in a tough spot financially. Their star quarterback is optimistic about the team’s ability to keep other star players on the roster. However, NFL fans on social media are not.
Fans React to Joe Burrow’s Latest Comments
Tee Higgins is set to become a free agent, and Ja’Marr Chase will also likely sign an extension in the offseason.
Since both world-class wide receivers deserve to get paid top-of-the-market money, the consensus is that the Bengals will not be able to keep both.
Burrow has always believed that the team will sign both Chase and Higgins to extensions and doubled down on this recently. NFL fans on social media were quite surprised to see how confident the Bengals quarterback is and decided to troll him.
Here are some of the reactions:
this ain’t madden bro
— dustin (@DJ_DoesSports) February 2, 2025
“You are going to be disappointed,” said a fan.
Another fan added, “Burrow is living in Lala land if he thinks Cincinnati’s owner has that kind of money.”
Bro thinks he's on the dodgers
— LMD (@ItsMeLMD) February 2, 2025
“I hate when a player takes over a quarter of the entire salary cap and tells the team to make it work,” said a fan while taking a dig at Burrow’s high salary.
“If CIN signs Chase, Higgins, and Hendrickson. Then they will be back in the Pro Bowl games next year. You can’t let four guys hold a team hostage,” wrote one fan.
Ja’Marr is getting 40+ a year, Higgins is getting 30+ a year, and Trey is getting 20+ million 💀 how tf are you going to resign them and be able to build a team 😭 https://t.co/NswpSqBrPa
— Caiden Wolford (@CaidenWolford) February 2, 2025
Higgins played on a franchise tag this past season and had 73 receptions for 911 yards and 10 touchdowns in 12 games. He will be the most coveted free agent wideout in the league this offseason, and multiple teams could go all-in to sign him.
As a result, it will be tough for the Bengals to win a bidding war to keep the 26-year-old receiver on the team. Per reports, Higgins could get over $30 million annually with his new contract extension.
The New England Patriots could easily offer Higgins a lucrative deal, but unlike in Cincinnati, he will be their true WR1 and the team will not be criticized for signing him. The Bengals already have one of the worst defenses in the league, and if they want to compete for the Super Bowl, they might have to prioritize defensive pieces over Higgins.
With his new contract, Burrow makes an average annual amount of $55 million every season, while Chase is expected to sign a deal close to the $40 million mark annually.
Since the salary cap in 2025 is projected to be between $265 million to $275 million, it would be top-heavy to say the least if the Bengals devoted that much of their salary cap to just three players on offense.
Due to this, Burrow’s hopes of having both Higgins and Chase on the roster will likely be crushed in free agency. But who knows?
