Star Receiver Tee Higgins Wants Out of Cincy; Would He Come Home to Tennessee (and the Titans)?

If the Tennessee Titans want to trade for wide receiver Tee Higgins, who has been franchise-tagged by Cincinnati, the Titans likely would have to give draft picks to the Bengals as compensation.

NASHVILLE — One of the Tennessee Titans' top priorities in free agency and the 2024 NFL Draft is to find a dynamic wide receiver to complement DeAndre Hopkins. Who would be better than Tee Higgins, the Oak Ridge, Tenn., native who reportedly requested a trade after the Cincinnati Bengals franchise-tagged him. 

This story has roots in Super Bowl week, a month before Higgins asked out of Cincy.

Lawrence Jackson of NBC Sports asked Higgins which quarterbacks he would want to play with — if he wasn't catching passes from Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. 

Tee Higgins requesting a trade ain't a big shock— that's the biz

a month ago he told me some QB’s he'd like to team up with if hes not a Bengal pic.twitter.com/riomtiUyKT

— Lawrence Jackson Jr. 🃏 (@LordDontLose) March 11, 2024

Two of quarterbacks he named are divisional rivals to the Titans:

• The Jacksonville Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence, whom Higgins played with at Clemson;
• and C.J. Stroud, the phenomenal Houston Texans rookie.

Higgins also listed Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills. 

He didn't name Titans QB Will Levis, which is interesting because in the same week Higgins also expressed interest in playing for Tennessee, his home state, and new Titans coach Brian Callahan, Higgins' offensive coordinator for four years with the Bengals.

"It would be good," Higgins said on the The Sick Podcast on radio row at the Super Bowl. "Going back home to family and then being able to play for a coach that I've already been under. It would be ideal."

Higgins had two 1,000-yard seasons playing for Callahan and he entered free agency as the highest-ranked wide receiver. 

If he stays in Cincinnati, Higgins will make $21.8 million for the 2024 season. If the Titans or any team want to acquire him in a trade, they'd have to give draft picks to the Bengals.

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