The Bengals are playing a risky game right now. With Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins forming one of the NFL’s deadliest trios, keeping them together should be a no-brainer. But money’s tight, and Cincinnati is out here making moves that have everyone side-eyeing them. They just hit Higgins with the franchise tag, which—let’s be real—shocked a lot of people, including Chase. His reaction? Pure confusion. Now, the vibes are off, and the drama is heating up.
According to Dianna Russini of The Athletic, Chase and the Bengals are miles apart on a new contract, even though the team has already thrown an offer his way. With Justin Jefferson securing the bag at $35M per year, Chase is looking at a minimum of $36M. But from the sound of it, Cincinnati isn’t even close to meeting his price. And let’s be real, dragging this out is not a good look.
Ja’Marr Chase is the priority and expected to reset the non-QB market. An offer has been made by Cincinnati, but the two sides remain far apart for now, per sources.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) March 3, 2025
To make things even messier, Chase’s reaction to Higgins getting tagged raises some questions. Was he expecting his deal to come first? Did the Bengals give him a different impression behind the scenes? Either way, Burrow—who has been very vocal about keeping Chase in town—probably isn’t loving how this is playing out. And when your franchise QB is watching, you really don’t want to fumble negotiations with his favorite target.
Cincy has also said they want to extend pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, but per Russini, if someone’s gotta go, it’ll be him. Makes sense—elite QBs need their top weapons, and Chase is that guy. But here’s the thing: nothing’s locked in. Teams trade franchise-tagged players all the time, and the Bengals could switch things up if they wanted to. So, Higgins’ future isn’t exactly set in stone either.
Bottom line? The Bengals need to figure this out fast. If they don’t lock down Chase, they’re not just risking their WR1—they’re playing with fire when it comes to Burrow, too. This franchise already fumbled with Carson Palmer by refusing to invest in winning. Doing the same thing with Burrow and Chase? That’s a disaster waiting to happen.
And Chase has made his point known that he’s not happy.
Ja’Marr Chase throws shade after Bengals tag Tee Higgins—again
Ja’Marr Chase didn’t have to say a single word—he let a meme do the talking. Right after the Bengals hit Tee Higgins with the franchise tag again, Chase hopped on Instagram and dropped the Joe Burrow side-eye pic. No caption. No explanation. Just straight-up pettiness. And if you’ve been keeping up with Bengals drama, you already know—this wasn’t random. Chase is clearly not feeling how the front office is handling Higgins’ situation, and he made sure everyone knew it.
Jamarr Chase is not happy about the Tee Higgins news pic.twitter.com/MvIyspFRW4
— BigBlueInsights (@BigBlue_Insight) March 3, 2025
From a business standpoint, yeah, the Bengals’ move makes sense. They’ve got three stars—Chase, Higgins, and pass rusher Trey Hendrickson—all needing new deals, and Chase is obviously the priority. But from a vibes standpoint? Not great. Chase has been very vocal about wanting Higgins to get paid, and Burrow has made it clear he wants to keep his squad together. If the Bengals keep playing around with these contracts, they’re gonna mess up the chemistry in that locker room real quick.
The funniest part? Chase didn’t just pick any meme—he went with this one on purpose. He used it last year when his contract talks were going nowhere, and Burrow even made it his profile pic in solidarity. Now he’s bringing it back right after Higgins got tagged? Yeah, this was calculated. The tag keeps Higgins in Cincy for now, but his future is up in the air. He could still get traded, and if he sticks around, there’s no guarantee he gets that long-term deal he deserves.
At this point, Chase is about to secure the bag—he’s probably gonna be the highest-paid non-QB in the league. But money aside, he wants his boy locked in, too. The Bengals dragging their feet on Higgins’ deal isn’t sitting right with him, and this meme? It was his way of calling them out without actually calling them out. Whether this is just some light trolling or a full-on warning sign, one thing’s clear—Cincy better stop playing before they end up with two unhappy WRs and a QB who’s not vibing with their decisions.
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