The AFC North could get more interesting if Tee Higgins or Trey Hendrickson get their wishes
For every team in the NFL, the path to the playoffs starts with their division. Not only must teams and fans pay attention to their own rosters but figure out what they need to do to get home-field advantage at least in the first round of the playoffs by winning their division.
For teams in the AFC North, that goal is much more difficult than a lot of divisions. The Cleveland Browns have finally entered the conversation the last few years while the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers have battled it our for decades.
Ranking the four teams is tough. The Ravens lost a lot of players in free agency, the Browns mostly stood pat while the Steelers have been rumored to be in on some big moves after acquiring Russell Wilson and Justin Fields this offseason.
For the Bengals, getting Joe Burrow back healthy is the key to their offseason but Tee Higgins requested a trade shortly after the team put the franchise tag on him and, now, Trey Hendrickson has done the same:
Not only has Cincinnati not been willing to offer Hendrickson, who had 17.5 sacks last year, long-term security but they’ve also not talked contract with Higgins in over a year. The defensive stud hopes the team changes their tune.
Interestingly, the Bengals don’t have a lot of highly-paid players.
There has long been concern about how little Bengals owner Mike Brown has been willing or able to spend on the team. With Burrow now signed to a huge deal and Ja’Marr Chase coming up on an extension, not paying Higgins and Hendrickson seems to confirm those concerns.
While the NFL has a salary cap, owners’ cash spending decides how creative and aggressive front offices can be. Cleveland and Baltimore are near the top in cash spent over the last three years while Cincinnati is just above average and Pittsburgh is closer to the bottom of the league.
The Bengals are not known for giving into player demands but having two-star players seek trades in the same offseason has to be concerning. If either or both are moved this offseason, the rest of the AFC North would celebrate not having to deal with Higgins and/or Hendrickson twice a year.