The Cincinnati Bengals had more than their share of contract drama this offseason.
The Tee Higgins negotiations went surprisingly well, considering the fact that the WR wasn’t expected to get a competitive offer just a year earlier.
But things did not go smoothly at all with star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, who, after a lengthy standoff, agreed to a raise for this year with nothing resolved long-term.
And rookie Shemar Stewart settled for $500,000 being moved to his signing bonus after Cincinnati
added language to his deal that wasn’t in previous rookie contracts.
For those reasons—along with an unrelenting energy for haggling—the Bengals won the title of most unstable franchise in a survey of 24 NFL agents on Last Man Standig. They received 5.5 votes, ahead of the Dallas Cowboys, who just traded away Micah Parsons after Jerry Jones attempted to circumvent his agent.
The author, Ben Standig, included a couple of quotes from random agents about the Bengals as well:
“There is always some kind of issue there, and not much accountability. This offseason, the contract negotiation for Trey Hendrickson and the language in the contract of their first-round pick are great examples. Every agent knows what’s coming.”
“Mom and pop ownership. In 2025. Makes it difficult to navigate.”
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Eagles received the most votes for the franchise that has its act together. And Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin won the title of head coach who gets the most out of his players.
Unstable or not, the Bengals have a stacked offense with a generational QB in Joe Burrow.
We talk about how far they can go this year in our season preview below.
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