Tee Higgins finally put pen to paper on his franchise-tag contract tender, but that doesn’t mean the drama and distractions are done.

Jeremy Fowler of ESPN provided an update on SportsCenter (h/t B/R’s Tyler Conway):

“Higgins, highly unlikely he gets a long-term deal. I was told that talks as of late are all but non-existent. So, they talked before, made an offer and didn’t come to any sort of agreement. It’s been pretty quiet. And so, Higgins is in a situation now where he’s all but relenting that, ‘I’m going to play on a one-year deal with the Bengals and then I’m going to go kill it in free agency in 2025.'”

It’s just the latest update in a contract situation that continues to drag on. Ben Baby of ESPN reported that contract negotiations between the receiver and the Bengals had little to no movement even before the 2023 season.

Baby also reported that Higgins formally requested a trade when the Bengals applied the tag to the 25-year-old.

Higgins’ 2023 campaign certainly didn’t help matters. He dealt with a hamstring injury and wasn’t as productive as previous seasons. He played in 12 games and had 42 receptions for 656 yards and five touchdowns.

In a Madden world where teams didn’t have to worry about chemistry and how players will react to decisions, it’s easy to say the Bengals should get one more year out of Higgins and move on after the season.

Unfortunately for them, the resolution to this situation isn’t that easy.

Higgins has motivation to push for security after dealing with an injury last season. The Bengals have an impetus to put off or avoid a deal with Ja’Marr Chase also due for a new contract.

How Cincinnati addresses the situation could determine whether this boils into a conflict that impacts the 2024 season.