Bengals extend Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins: What it means for Cincinnati’s future

• Ja'Marr Chase becomes the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history: Chase has earned an 84.0-plus PFF receiving grade in each of his four seasons and led the league in receptions, yards and touchdowns in 2024.

• The Bengals secure their receiving duo, shifting draft focus to defense: With Chase and Tee Higgins locked in long term, Cincinnati can prioritize defensive playmakers like Georgia’s Malaki Starks or reinforce the trenches in the 2025 NFL Draft.

• 2025 NFL Draft season is here: Try PFF's best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2025's top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.

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Wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and the Cincinnati Bengals have agreed to four-year contract extensions, per FOX Sports' Jordan Schultz, keeping them in Cincinnati with quarterback Joe Burrow for the long term.

Chase (four-year, $161 million extension) becomes the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history, and Higgins (four years, $115 million) is now the highest-paid WR2 in the league.

Chase is coming off a season where he led the league in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. He earned an 84.9 PFF receiving grade — the lowest of his career, dragged down somewhat by his 10 drops. However, he has now produced a PFF receiving grade above 84.0 in all four of his NFL seasons.

Higgins set a career high with 10 touchdown receptions and ranked eighth among wide receivers with an 88.3 PFF receiving grade in 2024, also the best mark in his career. He dropped just 2.7% of the catchable passes thrown his way, tied for eighth among wide receivers who saw at least 70 targets.

These mega-extensions remove wide receiver as a top need for the Bengals in the 2025 NFL Draft, allowing them to focus on defense early. Their biggest holes are in the trenches, especially off the edge should Trey Hendrickson wind up being traded. With those spots being the deepest in this class, they could make a splash with a defensive playmaker like Georgia safety Malaki Starks and then look to the defensive line in Rounds 3 and 4.

Cincinnati shouldn't be done adding to its offense, though. Guard remains a need, and if someone like Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., who some view as a guard at the next level, is available with the 17th overall selection, the Bengals should consider targeting the position. Banks earned a career-high 86.2 PFF overall grade in 2024, impressing both in pass protection and as a run blocker.