“When these guys play, they win” - NFL analyst lauds Bengals’ decision to spend $270,000,000 on Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins

NFL analyst Danny Parkins believes that signing Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins was the only option for the Cincinnati Bengals.

While discussing Chase's four-year $161 million extension and Higgins' four-year $115 million deal, Parkins made it clear that they were the right moves for the franchise despite being an expensive one.

"They were the best duo in football by a comfortable margin, nearly 400 yards, with Tee Higgins missing five games," Parkins said on Monday, via 'Breakfast Ball.' "But then everyone becomes an economist. Oh, but they're paying them too much money, or it's too high of a percentage of the cap.

"Well, yeah, they are getting more money than the next highest duo in Miami at wide receiver, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. But those contracts were signed after the 2023 season. It goes up with inflation as the cap goes up."

Parkins added how the Bengals play their best football and are most productive when Chase and Higgins feature in the offense.

"And then this may be the simplest point of all, when these guys play, they win period stop when they both are on the field, they can a tremendous amount of football games," Parkins said. "This was the only move you could do."

The Bengals have a 31-16 record when Chase and Higgins are in the lineup since 2021. During that same span, Cincinnati is only 9-12 when either Chase or Higgins is not playing.

The move is expensive but gives Cincinnati the best chance to win

While it is an expensive move for the Cincinnati Bengals, it likely presents the easiest path back to playoff success. The Bengals' defense was one of the worst in the NFL last year and multiple moves away from being a legitimate and elite unit again.

The quickest route to defensive success again could be through the NFL draft, something that does not require a lot of cap space. With the signings of both WRs, there is no need to invest any draft capital to skill position players this year and allows Cincinnati to invest solely on its defense.

The move keeps the elite trio of Chase, Higgins and Joe Burrow together for the long haul, which Burrow had been wanting and requesting for years.

Last season, the trio showed why they are arguably the best QB-WR-WR group in the NFL, as Burrow led the league in passing yards and passing touchdowns, Higgins tied for sixth in receiving TDs despite missing time with injury and Chase won the WR triple crown, leading the league in receptions, receiving yards and receiving TDs.