The dream of Tee Higgins reeling in passes from Drake Maye in Foxborough appears to be over.
The Bengals announced on Monday that they have placed a franchise tag on Higgins for the second consecutive season — preventing the star wideout from hitting free agency. Higgins will stay in Cincy for at least one more season for a guaranteed $26 million, although the team’s goal is to sign him to a long-term deal moving forward.
The Bengals’ move to retain their WR2 throws a major wrench into New England’s plans of using its NFL-leading $127 million in cap space to upgrade their offense via free agency.