Cincinnati Bengals' former All-Pro wide receiver Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson knows a thing or two about playing wide receiver at a high level. He also knows a thing or two about contract situations and how they play out in the league. Recently, in an appearance on Adam Schefter’s podcast, Johnson shared his thoughts on the contract situations of both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
Currently, Chase is heading into the fourth year of his rookie contract and is scheduled to make nearly $10 million for the season. Cincinnati has already picked up Chase’s fifth year option as a first-round pick, and that would have him making nearly $22 million next season. Chase is looking for a long-term deal with the team, and Johnson believes that he’ll get that deal sooner rather than later.
Johnson shared with Schefter that he believes the two sides will come to an agreement on a deal “Probably sometime this week. Definitely before the season starts, absolutely”. However, Johnson did expand upon that, saying that if a new contract isn’t reached before the regular season starts, he believes Chase “isn’t touching the field”.
Chase wasn’t the only contract situation that Johnson touched on with Schefter; he also shared his thoughts on the situation surrounding Tee Higgins. Higgins had previously requested a trade from the Bengals after the two sides failed to come to a long-term agreement and they placed the franchise tag on him. Higgins eventually relented on those demands and agreed to play this season on the tag.
Johnson doesn’t believe the Bengals will get so lucky next season. Johnson told Schefter “He’ll be going somewhere else and he’ll get what’s deserving of him: Being paid like a number one receiver.”
Between the Higgins situation, a potential stand-off with Chase, and Tyler Boyd leaving the Bengals in the off-season for the Tennessee Titans, the Bengals offense could look very different in 2024 and beyond.
