CINCINNATI — It's official: Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are here to stay.
The superstar wide receivers agreed to four-year contract extensions with the Cincinnati Bengals over the weekend, keeping Joe Burrow's favorite targets in town.
Chase is now the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league, bringing in $161 million over those four years.
"It still ain't hit me yet ... I'm just enjoying the process right now," Chase said at a press conference discussing the deal Tuesday afternoon.
After being placed under the franchise tag for the second straight season this March, Higgins was able to nab $115 million — becoming the highest-paid WR2 in the league and the receiver with the sixth-highest three-year APY (average per year) contract.
"For me, it's been a long time and it's finally here and I'm just happiest with this organization," Higgins said.
They join Burrow, who ranks second among NFL quarterbacks in three-year APY and fourth in total guaranteed money, as the Bengals' highest-paid players.
In February, Burrow told "First Take" host Stephen A. Smith on ESPN that he wanted to keep both Chase and Higgins, even admitting he'd be willing to restructure his own massive contract to keep his top targets. It appears that wasn't necessary for the AP Comeback Player of the Year.
Duke Tobin, Cincinnati's director of player personnel, said at the NFL Combine when asked about the Bengals' priorities in extending Chase and Higgins that the team is "fortunate to have fantastic football players, and we're going to treat them as such."
Now, the only top player left is Trey Hendrickson, who Tobin said they would like to keep on "a longer-term basis." The All-Pro defensive end requested permission to seek a trade, which the Bengals granted. However, NFL insider Ian Rapoport said the two sides are in talks for an extension following the Chase and Higgins deals.
