Duke Tobin on Bengals' Plan to Sign Star Players Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Trey HendricksonCINCINNATI — ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter noted it will be hard for Cincinnati to dish out a new contract to Trey Hendrickson this offseason.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel has been traded to the Washington Commanders in exchange for a fifth-round pick, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and ESPN's Adam Schefter. This ends Samuel's six-year tenure with the 49ers and he will now become a major target for Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels.

The Bengals announced Friday they have released veteran defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins. Releasing Rankins saves the Bengals $9.618 million against their cap, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Rankins,

The Cincinnati Bengals have signed star punter Ryan Rehkow to a two-year contract extension through the 2026 season, according to a report from ESPN's Adam Schefter. Rehkow landed in Cincinnati last summer after being signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent out of BYU following the 2024 NFL draft.

For a little while there, it was looking like the New England Patriots had no chance of signing Tee Higgins in free agency. It appeared that the Cincinnati Bengals were bound to keep him. But perhaps there is still a sliver of hope for the Patriots.

In one of the more surprising occurrences in the history of the NFL Combine, there was reportedly a heated exchange between NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Jordan Schultz. According to fellow insider Mike Florio,

One analyst's trade proposal would reunite Tee Higgins with Trevor Lawrence on the Jaguars while putting Arizona's Tetairoa McMillan in a position to be taken No. 5 in the 2025 NFL draft.

Ja'Marr Chase's reported contract extension could impact Tee Higgins' future, opening an opportunity for the New England Patriots to make a big move.

The Patriots need someone who can flip the switch, and lock-in on the end-zone route (wholly and solely)... The post NFL Rumors: Patriots Face Major Block in Signing Tee Higgins as Bengals Prioritize Ja’Marr Chase appeared first on EssentiallySports.

The window for teams to use franchise tags will open on February 18th at 4 p.m. EST and close on March 4th at 4 p.m. EST. ESPN’s Adam Schefter expects it to be a “quiet tag cycle” but named the following players as tag options: Bengals WR Tee Higgins,