The 2025 Free Agency Thread

DiscoChungus said:
They look at their defense, and realize they can't fix it and pay Higgins....
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You would think that, but this is the same Bengals team that drafted Jamaar Chase instead of Penei Sewell to protect Joe Burrow. Chase is great and it's hard to argue against picking a great skill player like chase, but the logical pick would have been a stud left tackle to protect your franchise QB. And in that draft year, Burrow was sacked 7 times in the Super Bowl as they lost to the Rams. But my main point is, the Bengals don't always do the thing we think makes sense. They may very well franchise Higgins or sign him long term and figure they can address the defense later or just try to score 40 a game to win.
 
Kel Varnsen said:
You would think that, but this is the same Bengals team that drafted Jamaar Chase instead of Penei Sewell to protect Joe Burrow. Chase is great and it's hard to argue against picking a great skill player like chase, but the logical pick would have been a stud left tackle to protect your franchise QB. And in that draft year, Burrow was sacked 7 times in the Super Bowl as they lost to the Rams. But my main point is, the Bengals don't always do the thing we think makes sense. They may very well franchise Higgins or sign him long term and figure they can address the defense later or just try to score 40 a game to win.
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Burrow @ 55M
Chase @ 35M
Higgins @ 26M (franchise tag)

I just don't see how that works for the rest of the team 🤷
 
The Bengals do not have a great history of resigning high-performing skill players. I think Higgins is out the door in the spring.

It's part of the reason I thought he might be a target for Peters before the trade deadline.
 
DiscoChungus said:
Burrow @ 55M
Chase @ 35M
Higgins @ 26M (franchise tag)

I just don't see how that works for the rest of the team
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They can get really creative with voidable years and things. Like the Eagles did with the Hurts contract.

I agree though, they can’t franchise him. They have to sign him to a long term deal. And they could also restructure Burrow and Chase also.

The Bengals window is now. They should go all in and just assume they will have to pay the piper in 4-5 years.

That said, I hope they let Higgins leave and I hope we sign him
 
Voice_of_Reason said:
That said, I hope they let Higgins leave and I hope we sign him
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Me too. His second TD catch yesterday was amazing. Like the analyst *whoever he was* said, his hands came up late, and because of that, the defender had no idea the ball was on the way.
That's brain-skill. We need that to compliment Terry.
 
Anselmheifer said:
The ravens are 17 million under the cap next year, according to, 'Over the Cap'. I think Stanley resigns. Do they have any other big players coming up?

I think an under appreciated facet of team building in San Francisco is how much they utilized trades. Did any of their stars come in FA? It seems like they mostly came in the draft, or in trades. I'd still anticipate us being active in the trade market to get impact players that we can't in FA.
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Great point on the idea of trades. We should look for more even if they aren't for big names, they would be pieces to the puzzle that fit their vision.

I am still thinking LT and a WR2 are positions that they like to have buttoned up before the draft. If you are right with the Ravens resigning Stanley they may look to Cam Robinson. That way they can slide Coleman to RT and focus on the IOL, WR2/3 and a TE for the offense.
 
Voice_of_Reason said:
They can get really creative with voidable years and things. Like the Eagles did with the Hurts contract.

I agree though, they can’t franchise him. They have to sign him to a long term deal. And they could also restructure Burrow and Chase also.

The Bengals window is now. They should go all in and just assume they will have to pay the piper in 4-5 years.

That said, I hope they let Higgins leave and I hope we sign him
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I wasn't really doubting that they can make the cap work, I know they can. I just don't see the decision making logic that leads them to that decision. They should let Higgins walk, and backfill their #2 WR with an aging vet (Hopkins, Cooper, etc) that Burrow can elevate to another year of competency.

But yes, they could do it.
 
To creatively work the cap rules requires investing cash outside of the traditional cap number. Cincy ownership has shown the willingness or desire to do that.
 
Anselmheifer said:
And players that are trying to get traded. I think that’s just as important.
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Great point, it is one of the few teams they will tell their current team they want to be traded to. And that gives Peters leverage!
 
Also, I think we should resign Olamide Zaccheaus. He played so tough last night. The dropped ball could have sunk us, but without his performance, we wouldn’t have won. He has 43 receptions and 3 TD’s this year.

I find it very entertaining that we got a 3rd from Philly for Dotson and then got this kind of production from a guy that was on their roster last year that they chose to let go. That also says a lot about our coaching and about Jayden.
 

It seems like there are quite a few options in FA for wide receiver and CB. Edge is pretty deep in the draft. It would be nice to get a good tackle in the first if a good one falls, edge in second and maybe some depth in the offensive line in the 3rd and 5th.​

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1. WR Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals​

Higgins rarely missed playing time over his first three seasons but has, unfortunately, been bitten by the injury bug in back-to-back contract years. That said, when Higgins has suited up so far in 2024, he has consistently produced at a high level. The fourth-ranked player in PFF's Free Agency Rankings last season, Higgins figures to be one of the most sought-after players on the market again in 2025.

4. WR Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Godwin has consistently displayed reliable hands, dropping fewer than 6% of catchable passes in six of his first seven NFL seasons. He was on pace to maintain that standard in 2024, earning an 85.7 PFF receiving grade through nearly seven weeks without a single drop on 52 catchable targets. However, Godwin sustained a season-ending left ankle dislocation. He is no stranger to entering free agency with an injury, and hopefully, the recovery will be even quicker this time around.

7. WR Amari Cooper, Buffalo Bills
Even at 30 years old, Cooper will be an attractive option for teams looking to improve at wide receiver, having earned a PFF receiving grade above 70.0 in every full season he has been in the league. He has struggled with drops in 2024, though, failing to bring in 18.4% of the catchable passes thrown his way.

13. CB Charvarius Ward, San Francisco 49ers
Ward has struggled so far in 2024 and is on track for career lows in a number of PFF metrics, but his body of work heading into this season will keep him as one of the top options on the market in 2025. Last year was his best in the NFL to date, with his 86.5 PFF coverage grade ranking third among all players at the position. With cornerback teammate Deommodore Lenoir receiving an in-season extension, the writing appears to be on the wall that Ward will be on the way out of San Francisco.
15. CB Rasul Douglas, Buffalo Bills
Douglas has faced some challenges to start the 2024 season, but his knack for making plays on the ball ensures he'll attract significant interest in 2025. Heading into this season, he had recorded at least seven pass breakups in six of his seven NFL seasons and notched four or more interceptions in each of the past three seasons.

21. CB Carlton Davis III, Detroit Lions
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded Davis in the offseason, and he has provided immediate stability to a young, oft-injured Detroit secondary that has seen a strong defensive turnaround even after the loss of Defensive Player of the Year front-runner Aidan Hutchinson.


16. EDGE Malcolm Koonce, Las Vegas Raiders
If Koonce hadn’t suffered a season-ending knee injury before 2024 began and instead carried over his momentum from the back half of 2023, he could’ve been squarely within the top 10 of our list. Perhaps the silver lining, if there is one, to getting injured so early in the year is that Koonce should be healthier entering the free agency period than if he got hurt during the season. A short-term deal where Koonce can hit the market again in 2026, or sign an extension one year into a two-year deal a la recent edge defenders like Uchenna Nwosu, could

33. CB Byron Murphy Jr., Minnesota Vikings
Murphy signed a two-year, $17.5 million free agent contract with the Vikings in the 2023 offseason and has certainly played up to that deal, looking like a good fit in defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ uber-aggressive defense. His six interceptions in 2024 are tied for the most among cornerbacks.
 
Anselmheifer said:
Also, I think we should resign Olamide Zaccheaus. He played so tough last night. The dropped ball could have sunk us, but without his performance, we wouldn’t have won. He has 43 receptions and 3 TD’s this year.

I find it very entertaining that we got a 3rd from Philly for Dotson and then got this kind of production from a guy that was on their roster last year that they chose to let go. That also says a lot about our coaching and about Jayden.
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I have liked and been rooting for Zach since he came here
 
I go back and forth on throwing the bank at Higgins on a big contract that presumably lets us out after 3 years (aka right when Jayden's contract hits us in the nads) and going after a Cooper like guy who will presumably be cheaper and a shorter term option. Maybe Godwin sits somewhere in between.

If Higgins could be expected to be healthy, I'd pull the trigger. We're still in a precarious part of Jayden's development where we want to give him tools to continue to grow and succeed, and not make things too hard for him. Which we are currently doing. Thank goodness dude has ice water for blood.

If it wasn't too much investment, I'd sign a WR and then draft one high; that or an RB high. Atlanta had the right idea back in the day with their Roddy White -> Julio Jones -> Calvin Ridley pipeline. Would give us a lot of flexibility at WR too. As much as I hope Terry's got another 5-6 years in him, if he's only got 3ish left, having a Tee Higgins waiting in the wings to be the vet and a Luther Burden III ready to take off, would be pretty big.
 
The funny thing about all this "you need a great wide receiver" talk is that none of the Superbowl powerhouses went that way. The Patriots for the most part had meh wide receivers and the Chiefs once they let Hill walk had poor wide receivers. Both did have very good tight ends though.
 
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