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ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 09: Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (1) celebrates with wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) after a touchdown during the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Cincinnati Bengals on December 9, 2024 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Cincinnati Bengals have reached contract extensions with both Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, according to multiple reports.
Chase's deal is for four years and $161 million and will make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history, according to NFL Network. Higgins will sign for four years and $115 million, per the report. The news on Chase confirms a Friday report that he was expected to sign a deal worth between $40.2 million and $41 million per season.
The deal keeps Cincinnati's top two receivers and the core of the Bengals' explosive passing game intact alongside quarterback Joe Burrow.
The road to Chase's potentially huge windfall was contentious. He staged a "hold-in" last training camp, where he showed up to practices but didn't participate.
That made for some awkward news conferences with head coach Zac Taylor.Chase was on a four-year rookie deal and the Bengals picked up the option on a fifth year (2025) that was scheduled to pay him $21 million. He earned $9.8 million last season.In response to the testy summer, Chase had the best season of his NFL career.
He won the league's triple crown for wide receivers, where he led the league in touchdown catches (17), receptions (127) and receiving yards (1,708). It was the first time a receiver achieved the feat since the Los Angeles Rams' Cooper Kupp in 2021.
His best game of the 2024 season was against the Baltimore Ravens in November, when he had 11 catches for 264 receiving yards and three touchdowns in a tight 35-34 defeat on the road.“He’s a fantastic football player,” Duke Tobin, the Bengals' director of player personnel, said at the NFL scouting combine. “He’s going to end up being the No. 1 paid non-QB in the league. We’re there. Let’s get it done."
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