When the Cincinnati Bengals made Ja’Marr Chase a top-five pick it came with the understanding keeping him in town for a long time was going to be expensive. When he had a Randy Moss-level breakout, the number went up again.
And it just keeps getting higher this offseason.
This week, the Bills announced a massive extension for wideout Stefon Diggs, checking in at four years and $104 million with $70 million guaranteed cash flow.
This comes on the heels of Tyreek Hill getting four years and $120 million ($75 million guaranteed) and Davante Adams getting five years and $141 million ($65 million guaranteed).
For context, in 2015, the Bengals signed A.J. Green to an extension worth four years and $60 million with roughly $33 million in total guarantees.
Normally this natural progression of the market wouldn’t be too much of an issue for the team to pay. But there’s a reason Joe Burrow’s extension has already come up in conversations. Burrow’s eligible for an extension after the upcoming season and the team would be smart to get it out of the way as early as possible.
In Buffalo, the Bills actually managed to create some cap space with the Diggs extension, so things aren’t as bad as they seem. But it just shows how tricky the next few years of cap management will be for the Bengals, especially with guys like Jessie Bates and others still needing long-term deals, too.
As a reminder, Chase was only 21 as a rookie during his stunning debut. There’s a near-zero chance the Bengals let a top-five wideout at the age of 25 get away when the time comes. But the path to keeping Burrow, Chase and other key pieces will be a challenge, albeit one the Bengals have proven they’re up for in the past.
