What's going on in Cincinnati?

[Direckshun]

Can somebody explain what's happening?

Burrow and Chase are both eligible for monstrous deals that will re-set the market. Are neither of them happening?!

They said they are committed to keeping Tee Higgins... alright, fine. But the guy wants a $20m/year contract?

Are they going to just hit the snooze button on this for a year somehow? Are these deals getting done?

What's going on?

[kccrow]

Originally Posted by BleedingRed

Thats actually not crazy, minus the fact Burrow probably going to roll with his homie.

True. I do also get keeping your QB happy but man it makes so much more sense from a business perspective to go the other way.

[BleedingRed]

Originally Posted by kccrow

True. I do also get keeping your QB happy but man it makes so much more sense from a business perspective to go the other way.

Yeah but this would be like trading Kelce for picks..... Mahomes might kill someone in the front office

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by kccrow

They might sign Burrow and try to keep the 1st extension year low so they can tag Higgins for 1 year before letting him walk but yeah, they can't keep both him and Chase.

I know it might sound ridiculous, but personally I'd sign Higgins to the extension and trade Chase next year for a haul.

Higgins vs. Chase seems like one of those situations where you're better served paying a little extra for the pick of the litter (and that's before you consider the Chase/Burrow chemistry going back to LSU).

I dunno - basketball is where you usually really see this kind of thing surface, but what you'll find is that a player who gets slightly less than a max deal is usually about half as good as guys who get a max deal. You're paying 90% as much for maybe 60% the player.

Obviously there aren't truly max deals but there are precedents that teams are loath to blow out of the water. I think Higgins gets a deal at/near Hill when he signs his LTC and I think Chase gets one just a little better than that.

I mean sure there's a difference in draft return, but is it enough to justify tying yourself to a very good WR rather than a potential generational talent in Chase? I don't see it.

Give me Chase at 110% of what Higgins makes plus a 1st rounder over Higgins at a slightly reduced figure and two first rounders.

I believe it was Bill Veeck that said "It's not the price of superstars that will kill a team; it's the high price of mediocrity..." I don't think that Higgins is mediocre by any means but I do think that the same principal applies. Chase is worth what he costs - pay the guy.

[T-post Tom]

All Cincinnati operations have been suspended until the mayor recovers from his frontal lobotomy.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

If they don't keep those two, Brown should sell the team.

I'd be FLOORED if they don't.

You don't break up a duo that young and that accomplished. That's Montana/Rice waiting to happen.

The Chiefs picked their path and it was Mahomes/Kelce. Right, wrong or otherwise, that's the decision they made and that's why they broke up Mahomes/Hill.

I mean I guess you could see them keeping Burrow/Higgins instead but man I doubt it. Higgins is a very good WR but he's not going to the HoF. Chase, on any reasonable curve uninterrupted by injury, absolutely will.

You don't take two guys in their early 20s who are tracking towards HoF resumes and break them up. You scorch the earth around them if you have to but that's the foundation of your franchise for the next decade.

Even Mike Brown knows better.

They'll get both deals done.

I agree. But if there is a mother****er that would choose the path of the dumb**** it would be Brown, who, mind you, traded Chad Johnson and Carson Palmer. The only real players they'd had in decades.

That that twat does it twice, Cinci should burn him at the stake.

[kccrow]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

I agree. But if there is a mother****er that would choose the path of the dumb**** it would be Brown, who, mind you, traded Chad Johnson and Carson Palmer. The only real players they'd had in decades.

That that twat does it twice, Cinci should burn him at the stake.

All the more reason I'd think they'd opt for keeping Higgins and trading Chase. Higgins will cost less. Chase will gain you more draft capital. That said, DJ and BleedingRed aren't wrong. The obvious solution is to keep Chase if the costs aren't substantially different.

[Iowanian]

I know what they're NOT doing in Cinci today....


Polishing their Lamar Hunt or Lombardi trophies.

[MarkDavis'Haircut]

The decision is easy.

Pay Burrow.
Keep Chase.
Trade Huggins for picks.

If Burrow is elite as you believe he is (and he is), you trust him to make hay with another drafted WR or some second line WRs.

[Megatron96]

Originally Posted by BleedingRed

Then he is going to have to sign short term contract because of the GTD money

Whatever. They’ll do whatever it takes at this point.

They got to the SB after dominating KC in the AFFCG 2021. And were within a pube of doing it again in 2022. They know they have the team to beat the Chiefs right now, and they have the record to prove it.

It won’t be hard to convince the owner to go all-in on that team to get a SB before KC can restock the team with real WR talent.

[notorious]

Originally Posted by The Franchise

There are reports that they've started discussions with Burrow. Chase will probably wait until Jefferson's deal is done.

That concrete dildo is about to be jammed all the way up Minnesota and Cincy's ass.

[Valiant]

Originally Posted by Megatron96

Whatever. They’ll do whatever it takes at this point.

They got to the SB after dominating KC in the AFFCG 2021. And were within a pube of doing it again in 2022. They know they have the team to beat the Chiefs right now, and they have the record to prove it.

It won’t be hard to convince the owner to go all-in on that team to get a SB before KC can restock the team with real WR talent.

Dominating? Every game has been 3 pts.

You trade higgens and use the picks to reload.

[DRM08]

Originally Posted by Megatron96

Whatever. They’ll do whatever it takes at this point.

They got to the SB after dominating KC in the AFFCG 2021.

Do what?? Nothing dominant about any of Cincy's wins over the Chiefs. The biggest question for them will be what happens to their defense when they finally start paying big money to Burrow, Chase, Orlando, and whoever else on the offensive side of the ball.

The Cincy defense has done a pretty amazing job in the Playoffs the last two years. Never given up more than 23-24 points in any Playoff game, something that cannot be said for any other team that was in contention to win a ring the last couple years. They held an explosive Rams offense to 23 points, held an explosive Buffalo offense to 10 points, and held an explosive Chiefs offense to 23-24 points (2 games).

So what happens to this great defense when the offensive side of the ball is finally getting paid instead of a bunch of rookie contracts?

[Rainbarrel]

Too early for a turkey drop

[Titty Meat]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

I know what they're NOT doing in Cinci today....


Polishing their Lamar Hunt or Lombardi trophies.

I know what we would be doing if I was in Iowa...

[Megatron96]

KC is 1-3 vs. CIN last I checked. CIN has outscored KC something like 20-6 in the 4th quarter over the last 3 games. Those are facts. And let's not forget that CIN was down 3/5 starting OLs in the last one. So let's not pretend that KC just dominated the last AFCCG.

I'll keep saying it. CIN has been able to stall the KC offense repeatedly, and the lack of talent in the WR group has been glaring in the last two matchups. The KC defense has done its job over the last three games vs. CIN, but the offense hasn't been able to even score to their season average.

And right now, we have one returning WR that we can probably depend on in MVS, and the rest of the room is pretty much wishful thinking.

We HOPE Toney can stay healthy, and then we HOPE he can perform reliably for a season.

We HOPE Skyy can triple his production and score more than zero TDs.

We HOPE Justyn and John can do anything in the regular season. Anything would be better than zero.

We HOPE McKinnon returns and performs at about the same level.

We HOPE Justin Watson returns and at least gives us the same level of production.

We HOPE whoever we draft can produce at least as well as Hardman did in his first season.




But right now, the Chiefs WR room is far less talented than it was in 2022, that can't be argued. And no real answers either in the TE or the RB rooms at the moment. Just more hopes, except for Pacheco.

CIN doesn't have to hope. They don't even need their defense to perform at the same level as they did in 2022. They need to simply be a little more efficient on offense, play average on defense, and they'll be able to notch another W.

From their perspective, I don't know what else they'd be thinking. They have the upper hand, and the stats as well as the results to prove it. If their OTs had been healthy, chances are CIN goes to the SB. If I were their FO/ownership that's what I'd be thinking.