Joe Burrow continues to pressurize the Bengals’ front office to retain their key talent this off-season
Joe Burrow continues pushing the Bengals front office to bring back key personnel such as Trey Hendrickson, Ja'Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins in the off-season.
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Joe Burrow (Image via IMAGO)
The Cincinnati Bengals made history for all the wrong reasons this league year. Despite having the most dominant offense, a quarterback who led the NFL in passing yards and touchdowns, and the best wide receiver, they failed to make the playoffs. For Joe Burrow and the Bengals, the disappointing defense ensured that a phenomenal season went to waste.
What’s done is done. The quarterback is not interested in loathing about what could have been. Joe Burrow has now shifted his focus to next season, and the first step to ensuring success for the 2025 season would be to get all of his receivers back.
The quarterback has continued to publicly push the Bengals’ front office to bring Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase back at any cost. Burrow vouched for Cincinnati to bring back defensive end Trey Hendrickson during free agency. While speaking to Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe, and Cam Newton on First Take, Burrow expressed his confidence in the team’s ability to get this done.
We need Trey back, we need to give him what he’s worth and what he deserves, he’s earned that…I think we have the young guys that are capable of going into an off-season, training the way that they need to, taking advantage of all the opportunities they can and then come out and play well early.
Joe Burrow said
From a teammate’s perspective, Burrow’s statements seem harmless, but considering that this man is the franchise, he is the savior of the Bengals franchise, the team must be concerned.
The Bengals front office will have a hard time structuring Higgins and Chase’s contracts
Stephen A. Smith echoed this sentiment after hearing Burrow vouch for Hendrickson. The analyst is worried that Cincinnati may not be able to bring back all of its stars. However, Joe Burrow confidently iterated that it is possible.
The cap is going up each year, we just got new TV deals and we all want to stay together so we’re going to do what it takes to do that. We have great players that have done great things and deserve to be paid, they’re going to be paid what they’re worth whether we do it or someone else.
Joe Burrow added
The chemistry between this Bengals offense is special and it would be a shame to see this roster be stripped apart without them winning a Super Bowl.
For Cincinnati, things have not been the same since they made the Super Bowl in 2022. The team has struggled since due to Burrow’s injuries and this year, their defensive shortcomings. When they have had their franchise quarterback healthy, the Bengals offense has never faltered, which is why they must be kept together.
#Bengals QB Joe Burrow keeps putting public pressure on the team: “We need Trey Hendrickson back. We need to give him what he's worth and what he deserves. … The cap is going up. We just got new TV deals. We all want to stay together."
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) February 6, 2025
(@via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/C7nfTHAabA
This group is special, but the issue is Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase both expect to be paid on par with the highest receivers. For the former, a good measure would be Brandon Aiyuk’s contract whereas the latter will not settle for anything less than CeeDee Lamb-type of money.
The problem here is that if Cincinnati gives in to Joe Burrow’s demands, then it will hinder their ability to spend on improving other positions for the foreseeable future. Likely, the team will rely on drafting well to resolve their shortcomings on defense and the challenge on offense is to keep this core together. It will be a daunting task, but if they can get it done, then Cincinnati can rest assured that their offense is going to dominate for a long time.
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Sumedh Joshi
(2298 Articles Published)