The Philadelphia Eagles are on top right now, and Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals want to get there. They were on the cusp a few years ago but haven’t come close over the last two years. How do they get back to where they were, and to take the next step? Take some inspiration from the Eagles, Burrow suggests. At least, that appears to be his rather public advice to Bengals owner Mike Brown.
The matter at hand is money, specifically paying the team’s star players. While the Bengals paid up for Joe Burrow, he has been campaigning to make sure others are compensated too. WR Ja’Marr Chase is the priority, but there are others to pay.
“We have the cap space to get it done”, Burrow said of the Bengals’ offseason re-signing plans. “I want to make it happen. Everybody involved Trey [Hendrickson], Tee [Higgins], Ja’Marr [Chase], Mike [Gesicki], we all want to stay together. When you have guys that are motivated like that I think you can get those things done”.
During Super Bowl week, Burrow attended the festivities, continuing to pound the table for his teammates. He told Pro Football Talk, “The Eagles are paying everybody. That seems like the way”.
This may be hard to believe, but the Eagles don’t have any player with a cap hit larger than $22 million for the 2025 season. QB Jalen Hurts comes the closest, checking in just under that total. A.J. Brown, Lane Johnson, Josh Sweat, Jordan Mailata, Darius Slay, and Dallas Goedert all come in over $10 million as well. They are projected to have just $18 million in cap space, but when you have a complete roster, there isn’t much you have to do.
Sweat is only technically under contract, though, due to void years, and he is the Eagles’ top free agent. They also have to consider Brandon Graham, Zack Baun, Mekhi Becton, Avonte Maddox, and Milton Williams. But that’s not as daunting as the Bengals’ needs to re-sign Joe Burrow’s wide receivers. And they have to figure out what to do with Trey Hendrickson, who has already hinted at wanting a trade.
Chase just completed his fourth season, finishing the year leading the NFL in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. Under no circumstances should he play another snap before securing the largest wide receiver contract in NFL history. Burrow wants the Bengals to prove they will do that—and to keep Higgins around too. Higgins is going into Year 6, playing under the franchise tag last year, and is a pending free agent.
While Bengals owner Mike Brown has a reputation for being cheap, the reality is all teams are obligated to spend the vast majority of their cap. Some teams are just better at finagling the numbers through accounting tricks. But is keeping Higgins for Burrow’s sake in the Bengals’ best interests? After watching the Eagles win with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, they might not have much wiggle room.
