INDIANAPOLIS — Duke Tobin took questions for 30 minutes at the podium, double that of the typical media availability at the NFL Combine.
Tobin, the Bengals’ de facto general manager as director of player personnel, spent most of that time responding to questions about how he can pay Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati's trio of stars who are all eligible for new contracts. Tobin even joked about how many times he was asked about the topic.
"I’m pretty run out here," he exclaimed. "The dynamic type questions, maybe I’ve lost my dynamic nature. I don’t know."
But the confidence he exuded about the ambitious goal was apparent.
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Tobin was not only adamant that the Bengals wanted to sign all three — including making Chase the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history — but he was also bullish about Cincinnati’s ability to do so. After all, the Bengals have $58.1 million in effective salary cap space for 2025, eighth-most in the NFL, according to Over The Cap. They also have on their books just $2.3 million in dead money (cap charges for players who are no longer on the roster), lower than all but four teams. That accentuates their financial flexibility.
"We’re fortunate to be in a position where we can fit them all in," Tobin said Tuesday. "We’ve managed our cap well. We have low dead money. We want a high payroll and low dead money, so the people who are in Cincinnati playing for us can get all the money. That’s what we want. And we’re in a position to re-sign these guys. It’s a good position to be in. It really is. And we’re going to attack it.
"It’s a tall task," he added. "We think we’re up to it."
So, how can Cincinnati make it happen?
It starts with getting a deal done with receiver Higgins, who’s scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next month — unlike Chase and Hendrickson, who are entering a contract year.
[Related: Top 100 2025 NFL free agents: Tee Higgins, Sam Darnold lead the way]
The Bengals have at their disposal the franchise tag, which Higgins played on last season. The non-exclusive tender would give him a $26.2 million salary for 2025, which is 120% of his last season’s salary. But if the Bengals use the tag by the Tuesday deadline, it should be just as a placeholder. If Higgins plays on the tag (again), the full amount would count against Cincinnati's salary cap, as opposed to a significantly lower cap number — and more financial flexibility — that would come from a multi-year deal.
Higgins wants the long-term security, likely a deal that exceeds $30 million in average annual value, which would slot him in the top-seven at his position.
"He fits with us and we fit with him," Tobin said of Higgins. "It’s a great match. There’s no reason to not work hard to continue the relationship."
Chase’s deal should be north of $35 million per year, topping the mark of the Minnesota Vikings’ Justin Jefferson for the highest AAV for a non-quarterback ever. Chase should be next after Higgins. And like Chase, defensive end Hendrickson could look to reset the market at this position, despite being 30 years old. He has 35 sacks over the past two seasons, including a league-high 17.5 in 2024. The San Francisco 49ers’ Nick Bosa currently tops the edge-rusher market at $34 million per year.
By the end of this offseason, if everything goes according to plan, the Bengals could have four players making north of $30 million a year, including quarterback Joe Burrow and two receivers. It’s feasible, because new contracts for Chase, Higgins and Hendrickson could keep salary cap charges low in the immediate future as Burrow’s cap number takes a significant jump next season. It’ll be $46 million in 2025, which is more than 16% of Cincinnati’s salary cap, per OTC. Chase’s cap charge for next season is currently slated to be $21.8 million, while Hendrickson is at $18.6 million.
The increased cap flexibility from re-upping their stars would also help the Bengals improve their defense, which cost the team several games last season. Cincinnati, which has missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, ranked 25th in points allowed in 2024, compared to sixth in scoring with Burrow & Co.
"The earlier we can do some of [these contracts], the freer it gives us to build the rest of the team," Tobin said. "We have other needs that we want to build, so we want to get these kind of things done early enough to where we can really focus on building out the rest of the football team.
"We don’t want to just re-sign these guys and pay more for the same football team we had last year," he added. "We want to add to it as well, so we want to re-sign these guys, reward them for their ability level and add to the football team."
An ambitious plan is underway.
Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.
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