Tee Higgins Sounds Nice, But This Is The FA Wide Receiver The Browns Should Pursue
Bengals wideout Tee Higgins is the bell of the ball right now in Cleveland.
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Deshaun Watson's public pitch for the soon to be free agent to join him in "the land," has fans dreaming of the two Clemson products hooking up for touchdowns next fall. After finishing the 2023 campaign ranked 14th in the league in total receiving yards, the team appears prepared to enter another offseason searching for a running mate for Amari Cooper.
That was meant to be Elijah Moore's in 2023, but production left something be desired after general manager Andrew Berry sent a second-round pick to the Jets for his services last March. He finished with 640 yards but only found the end zone twice.
Higgins would obviously represent a major upgrade within the Browns wide receiver room. In four seasons in Cincinnati, Higgins has racked up 3,684 yards, including two 1,000 yard seasons lining up opposite of Ja'Marr Chase. Add 24 touchdowns to the mix and yeah, Cleveland would be getting a top flight weapon for Watson.
But top flight talent comes with a top flight price and the Browns roster is getting expensive. Higgins represents one of, if not the top free agent wide receiver on the market this offseason. Spotrac has his market value listed around four years, $74.4 million, or about $18.6 million per year.
Berry has some salary finagling to do to get under the cap before the Browns can start thinking about signing anyone on the open market. Even after he does that, he has more than just a wide receiver need to address this offseason.
Don't get it twisted, Higgins is great and if he were to end up in Cleveland it would be a worthy addition. Thanks to Watson's comments he may now be their white whale this offseason. But other options exist on this year's free agent market, and one in particular could actually be a better fit than Higgins.
I present to you, Arizona Cardinals wideout, Marquise "Hollywood" Brown. Formerly of the Baltimore Ravens.
Nov 12, 2023; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marquise Brown (2) is unable to catch a pass against the Atlanta Falcons during the first half at State Farm Stadium.
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
In five seasons in the NFL, Brown has amassed 3,644 yards and 28 touchdowns. In his final year in Baltimore playing with Lamar Jackson, he posted the only 1,000 yard season of his career.
There seems to be less hype over Brown at the moment because he spent the last two years rotting if you will on a bad Cardinals teams his numbers took a hit. Browns accounted for only 1,283 yards and seven touchdowns combined during that span. Don't get lost in recency bias though, because he's proven to be plenty reliable particularly with the right QB. He also bring something the Browns could desperately use in their passing attack: speed.
Last offseason the Browns turned to Moore and Marquise Goodwin to provide that missing element of their offense but it never really materialized with either player. Brown, meanwhile, posted a 4.3 forty time at the NFL Combine in 2019 and has continually proven he can take the top off of a defense. Since 2020, he's hauled in 45 receptions of 20-plus yards. For what it's worth, Higgins has eight more over that same span with 53. Browns market value though, four years, $59.5 million according to Spotrac. That's an AAV of $14.8 million.
More affordable. Check. Fills a needed role in the Browns offense. Check. What's not to like?
I'll leave you with this. Brown in the right situation comps pretty well to Christian Kirk in Jacksonville. The biggest difference being that Kirk doesn't quite possess the speed that Brown does. Numbers wise though, Kirk – with an addition year of experience – has a little over 1,000 yards more than Brown for his career but the same number of touchdowns. In Browns best two season between from 2020-2021, he averaged a 11.9 yards per reception, while Kirk averaged 13.4 yards per reception in his first two years with the Jags where he's been "unlocked" if you will.
Similarly, Brown could use a situation that helps unlock him. As the Browns look to cater their offense even more to Watson, teaming up with Watson feels like a match made in heaven.
