Can the Cincinnati Bengals really hold all three stars?

At the weekend, a media report, which revealed doubts about NFL officials, made the Cincinnati Bengals able to bind all three of their big names in this offseason in the long term. But is that really a thing of the impossibility?

The otherwise well -informed reporter Dianna Russeini from “The Athletic” wrote to bind to themselves in the long term in her column “Russini’s what i’M Hearing” from the Bengal plan of the Bengal plan – Wide Big Names – Wide Receiver Ja’marr Chase and Tea Hendrickson.

This passage was remarkable: “The Bengals made it clear – they want to conclude contracts with their stars. But the question that I heard from NFL managers at Combine again and again was: How do they want to pay all three players?” A legitimate question, but not for the reason you could think of now.

Because purely cap-technology, this undertaking should not be too big problem.

Salary Cap is not in the way of Bengals

The Bengals currently have a little more than $ 43 million in Cap Space. This already includes the more than $ 26 million that the franchise for Higgins costs. Also included are the $ 21.8 million that chase would receive in the fifth year of the contract. However, both are Cap Numbers, which would decrease very safely with contract extensions. The same is probably also true for Hendrickson, who currently counts against CAP with $ 18.67 million and is also in the last year of the contract.

That means trivial formulated: All three would very likely lower their cap hits with contract extensions and thus even save cap space. You could also ensure further cap space if you restructure Joe Burrow’s contract. As a result, almost $ 20 million in fresh Cap Space is in there.

So the Salary Cap will not be an obstacle to bind the three big names in the long term. The question is therefore to what extent team owners Mike Brown is ready to take real money in hand to realize this goal.

There are several obstacles here. If you look at the Bengals willingness to pay in recent years, they have never spent more than $ 275 million in one season. After all, that was the case in 2024, but it was only 18th in the NFL. In other words, you are not confessed to count among the big donors of the league.

Bengals: Chase has top priority

For the 2025 season, they currently have obligations in the amount of round 202.47 million dollars are in the books, with which they take 15th place on the NFL. So 73 million would have to be distributed by the previous year. And if you really want to keep the three big names, it shouldn’t be enough.

In detail, this looks like this: The top priority has receiving triple crown winners Ja’marr Chase. You want to make him the best paid non-quarters back of the NFL, as quasi-GM Duke Tobin recently emphasized: “Yes, yes, it will always be our priority. He will be the best paid non-quarters back in the league. We are there. Let’s do it!”

How it may look is open. In any case, the contract of Minnesotas Justin Jefferson is the bar. In the previous year, he also extended over four years and $ 140 million before his last year of contract. That is an average of $ 35 million. His signing bonus was just under 40 million dollars and even when signed, he was guaranteed almost $ 90 million, but in practical terms, however, $ 110 million are guaranteed.

And here we already have the first problem for the Bengals, because with them it is common not to secure non-quartersbacks no guarantees beyond the first year of the contract. That should be difficult to convey at Chase. And with the announcement of Tobin it is already clear that the average salary will survive the 35 million of Jefferson.

According to Russini, after the first offer, you are still far apart in terms of the ideas for this new contract. She did not give any details, but it is not absurd that the guarantees beyond 2025 should be the sticking point. So what would be an appropriate construct with which both sides could live? Would $ 150 million appropriate over four years? That would be 37.5 million on average – Jefferson would be outdated.

In addition, a signing bonus of just under $ 50 million would also come. And presumably one would have to guarantee at least year 2 of the contract in any form – be it via option bonus, which would then act for CAP purposes like another signing bonus. This would then have to amount to more than $ 30 million in order to beat Jefferson’s first two years at least halfway. That gets here only Almost 70 million totaled. Chase was already around 80 million.

Bengals: Brown as a model for Higgins?

About $ 50 million in the first year, the cash donation of the Bengals would already be over $ 230 million Routes – his previous 2025 content (around 21.8 million) was already part of the starting value.

Higgins, in which the franchise day (26 million) now forms the basis for a long-term deal, should legitimately demand at least $ 30 million on average as a number 2 receiver, probably even a little more, after all, the assumption was that it could also have ended up in the area of ​​$ 32 million.

Whether fair or not, we take the AJ Brown Treaty from the Eagles for comparison, since it earns that $ 32 million on average. At the time, he signed a contract extension over three years and $ 96 million. The signing bonus was just under $ 20 million and was guaranteed to be 51 million from the start, practically even 84 million.

The first two years were also fully guaranteed for him, which results in the $ 51 million (salary plus signing bonus and option bonus 2025). His payment for 2026 (29 million) will also be fully guaranteed on the third day of the League Year 2025 (March 14).

For Higgins, given the fact that he does not come onto the market for the second time, an extension of only three years would make sense. At the age of 26, he would probably actually get on the market for his 30th birthday in 2029, since a third franchise day would be exorbitant.

Accordingly, Higgins will probably have to offer at least $ 30 million in the first year – due to the lack of guarantees afterwards – and probably even a payment of at least $ 20 million in whatever form for year, perhaps even 25 million to top Browns. However, it would be guaranteed to be only the first year, maybe even the second one on the roster bonus 2026 or possibly an ongoing guarantee of the 2026 salary early in the league year.

If this comes like this, we speak of $ 30 million that Cincy 2025 would have to shell out. Then your cash spending would already be $ 260 million below the previous year’s level.

Bengals: Comparison for Hendrickson difficult

And then there would be Edge Rusher Trey Hendrickson, who in my opinion should have become the defensive Player of the Year 2024. He is an elite pass-rusher and wants a new contract or a trade. As with the other two, a holdout in summer and even through the training camp does not seem excluded, if not one of the two.

So the question is now who you can use to compare Hendrickson. The current top earner among the Edge Rushers is Nick Bosa on average with $ 34 million. However, this seems to be a little bit for Hendrickson, who is already 30 years old. However, there are three players behind them who earn $ 28 million on average – Joshua Hines -Allen (Jaguars), Brian Burns (Giants) and TJ Watt (Steelers).

At Watt there is also an extension, which is why it makes sense for Hendrickson to wait for him and certainly also Myles Garrett, both of whom have the potential to reorganize the market – before the Micah Parsons will probably do again in late summer, i.e. shortly before goal closes.

But we proceed conservatively, then we also speak of a signing bonus of around $ 35 million at Hendrickson. And because of its age, we expect only three more years, so that we end up with $ 84 million as a total volume – 28 million on average. Since age is a factor for him, a guarantee beyond 2025 seems to be measured here, which is why this may be a fair number: three years, $ 84 million, of which around $ 36 million guarantees in the first year.

The Bengals would then be at Cash Spending in the amount of $ 280 million – Hendrickson would pay a salary increase by $ 20 million compared to his previous actual content of $ 16 million. In view of the renewed Salary CAP increase, $ 280 million would be within the scope of more than $ 20 million. Of course, you have to make other funds loosely to restore your defense and pay your rookie class.

But realistically, it seems quite conceivable that the Bengals could go through the season with real expenses of around $ 300 to $ 310 million. In the previous year, this sum would have been good for 7th place in the NFL.

In the end, the Gretchen question remains whether Mike Brown wants to spend this. Only he can answer that, but if the announcements of the Bengals were truthful a few weeks ago, then the shown would be the way to achieve the goal of keeping all three.