DENVER BRONCOS

Oddsmakers favor Broncos to land Tee Higgins, with a caveat

Feb 12, 2025, 2:26 PM | Updated: 2:49 pm

Any NFL team would love to land Cincinnati Bengals free agent wide receiver Tee Higgins this offseason.

That includes the Denver Broncos, who according to the oddsmakers, have the best chance of signing Higgins. But there’s a caveat.

One sportsbook released their Higgins “next team” odds on Wednesday, however, this is if he doesn’t go back to the Bengals. This post is going viral on social media, but fails to mention that rather important detail.

Cincinnati put the franchise tag on Higgins this past offseason, and could do it again. It would cost them a cool $26.17 million, but would keep Higgins in Cincy with QB Joe Burrow and stud WR Ja’Marr Chase for at least one more season. Burrow has recently made it clear (again) the Bengals needs to step up and keep their young offensive core together.

But if Higgins hits the open market, he’d certainly be an enticing option for the Broncos. The only reason he’s not currently a No. 1 receiver is because Chase plays opposite of him. In Denver, he’d clearly be the top option for QB Bo Nix with Courtland Sutton slotting in as a great No. 2.

Higgins torched the Broncos in Cincinnati in December, going off for 11 catches for 131 yards and three touchdowns. He also scored the game-winner in overtime to end a classic.

Higgins was only able to play in 12 games in 2024, but still caught 73 passes for 911 yards and 10 touchdowns. If you project those numbers out over a full season, it’s 102 catches for 1,290 yards and 14 scores. Those are monster stats that Broncos head coach Sean Payton and GM George Paton would love to pair with Nix.

The problem is that Denver has about $50 million in salary cap space, and Higgins could command around $30 million a year in a four-year deal. There’s always ways to get creative, but that would be a huge dent in the Broncos’ budget.

This will be one to watch with free agency opening next month. And if Tee Higgins hits the open market, the oddsmakers like Denver’s chances.

Denver Broncos

Ashton Jeanty Broncos draft...

Will Petersen

Ashton Jeanty specifically mentions the Broncos as ‘talking to him the most’

"Really, the Denver Broncos, they was heavy on me," Ashton Jeanty said in a recent interview about teams that spoke with him at the NFL Combine

6 hours ago

Cam MIller, North Dakota State QB, visited with the Broncos...

Andrew Mason

For Broncos, isn’t it nice to have the quarterback riddle answered?

The best part of this year's pre-draft process for the Denver Broncos has been not having to worry about quarterback.

22 hours ago

Denver Broncos Power Rankings Courtland Sutton...

DenverSports.com Staff

Report: Sutton believes contract talks with Broncos are ‘working in right direction’

Courtland Sutton seems optimistic that he and the Broncos can work out a contract extension to settle his situation for the long term.

3 days ago

Shedeur Sanders...

Andrew Mason

Shedeur Sanders isn’t on Broncos’ radar — but he could impact their draft

Just because the Broncos aren't looking for a quarterback doesn't mean Shedeur Sanders' status might not affect their draft plans.

5 days ago

John Elway...

James Merilatt

Milestone No. 1: The Broncos finally get to hoist the Lombardi Trophy

After 37 years of waiting, including four seasons that ended in the ultimate disappointment, the Broncos were finally able to win the Super Bowl

5 days ago

(Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)...

James Merilatt

Milestone No. 2: Tebow Mania becomes the biggest story in sports

During a six-game winning streak that turned the 2-5 Broncos into a playoff contender, Tim Tebow became the biggest story in all of sports

6 days ago

Oddsmakers favor Broncos to land Tee Higgins, with a caveat