It makes little sense to let a crucial offensive piece depart without receiving anything in exchange, especially when the Bengals are expected to have enough salary space to sign enough guys to avoid receiving a compensation choice in lieu of Higgins. Alternatively, Cincinnati might use that short-term space to make sure that Higgins doesn’t go undrafted in 2024, when he would likely be paid upwards of $25 million annually as the starting wide receiver for his new team. Cincy has three choices when using the tag on Higgins:

Higgins should be extended on a contract that is reasonable given his value (even taking into account the possibility of a Ja’Marr Chase extension, which should be achievable even though it would leave less money to spend elsewhere).

If it were up to me, I would attempt to extend Higgins in an effort to provide Joe Burrow with a steady supply of dangerous pass catchers. But, as we witnessed when safety Jessie Bates signed with Atlanta over the offseason, the Bengals aren’t scared to cut a player when their finances don’t work out.

Under Joe Flacco, the Browns’ vertical throwing offense proved effective. They need to add an outside speed threat to go with Amari Cooper if they want to maintain that when Deshaun Watson returns to the starting lineup in 2024. This is especially important because their recent attempts to strengthen the receiving corps (drafting Cedric Tillman last year and trading for Elijah Moore) haven’t worked out. Even with the team’s first pick presently scheduled to be in the second half of the second round, Cleveland could wait until April to address this aspect of the draft given the depth at the receiving position in the 2024 NFL Draft. Due to their anticipated shortage of cap space and requirement to replenish the defensive line, the Browns will find it difficult to.

The Russell Wilson topic will receive a lot of attention in the upcoming weeks, so there’s no need to revisit it. Rather, let us examine the wideout room, where any changes at quarterback will not allow the current situation to continue for another season. Entering his fifth pro season, Jeudy (53.6 receiving yards per game) has unable to establish himself, and the Broncos would likely prefer to let him go. It would be challenging to find a buyer, though, considering the $12.987 million Jeudy is guaranteed on his fifth-year option in 2024. The Broncos’ on-field upside in 2024 would be more severely harmed by trading Sutton, who caught 10 touchdown passes in 2023, but the trade should provide a higher return. Sean Payton denied reports during the previous offseason that Denver was.

Thanks to a remarkable group of young, gifted players, the 2023 Texans were an incredible story, making it all the way to the Divisional Round of the playoffs. It’s important to act now that the majority of those young players are still in the middle of their rookie contracts. Although the Texans may be better off in the long run by making significant moves in free agency, Houston should definitely use part of its estimated salary room to keep important free players like Blake Cashman, Dalton Schultz, Steven Nelson, and Jonathan Greenard. The addition of players like L’Jarius Sneed or Danielle Hunter would greatly increase the strength of DeMeco Ryans’ D. How would Saquon Barkley appear offensively next to quarterback C.J. Stroud? How about sending Mike Evans, a Texas A&M recruit, home to team up with receiver Nico.

The Colts should not be getting too fancy with their offense right now. With four touchdowns in 16 games and career highs in catches (109) and receiving yards (1,152), Pittman shown in 2023 that he is a player who can make an impact. Coach Shane Steichen’s scheme works well with his ability to get open off the snap, and he almost never drops the ball when it’s in his area. If the Colts decide to tag Pittman early in order to use him as a stand-in for an extension, I wouldn’t be surprised. Indianapolis should work with him rather than try to replace Anthony Richardson since he is an important component.

To be honest, the Jaguars ought to have taken this action last offseason. The price to retain Allen increased with his 17.5-sack 2023, and it will keep rising the longer they wait. The foundation of Allen’s ultimate stat line wasn’t flukey sacks. According to Next Gen Stats, he was third in the NFL with a pressure rate of 19.6% and finished second with 96 QB pressures. Allen deserves a lucrative salary. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement by the deadline, they always have the option of using the franchise tag, but doing so would increase the cost and difficulty of holding onto players like Calvin Ridley. When it comes to paying QB destroyers, don’t play around.

When Antonio Pierce stated that Aidan O’Connell provided the Raiders “the best chance” in November, it appeared as though the Jimmy Garoppolo era was coming to an end. The Raiders would have to pay a big dead-money number ($28.318 million if they cut Garoppolo outright) if they were to dump him now, but the sunk cost of losing him would undoubtedly be more tolerable if they were to go on with two rookie signal-callers. The Raiders should adopt Houston’s 2023 playbook, selecting a rookie quarterback in the draft to start with, cast second-year player O’Connell as their Davis Mills, and add an inexpensive veteran mentor to help the two. Tom Telesco, the general manager of the Chargers for almost ten years, only moved up in the first round of.

The Chargers’ offseason gained excitement with Jim Harbaugh’s return to the NFL, but an old, injury-prone, high-paid roster is in dire need of change. As the team closes the predicted salary-cap hole, Mike Williams (who will be coming off a torn ACL and carries a $32.5 million cap number for 2024, per Over the Cap) and Eric Kendricks ($9.3 million cap figure) appear to be the obvious candidates to be cut. Leader Khalil Mack, who is still relevant at age 33 but has a $38.5 million cap cost, may also be let go by Los Angeles. Then there is Joey Bosa ($36.6 million cap cost), whose injury history has restricted him to just 14 games in total over the previous two seasons. And the $34.7 cap hit for Keenan Allen.