The Jacksonville Jaguars are a team on the rise. They went on a great run at the end of the 2022 regular season, winning six out of the last seven to earn the AFC South title. A miraculous comeback ensued during Super Wild Card Weekend as Jacksonville overcame a 27-0 deficit. Their run ended in the Divisional Round against the Kansas City Chiefs, but they gave the Chiefs all they could handle.
The Jaguars have the tough part out of the way when it comes to building a contender as Trevor Lawrence looks like a franchise quarterback. He was a big reason for the team’s success and benefitted the most from Doug Pederson taking over as head coach.
The front office made a concerted effort in upgrading the weapons around Lawrence last year during the offseason. Christian Kirk and Zay Jones were free agent splashes last season and the team also acquired Calvin Ridley from the Atlanta Falcons while he was serving his suspension.
If the Jaguars want to keep up with the other top teams in the AFC, adding some more weaponry to their offense would be a good idea. One player who would be a great target for them in a trade is wide receiver, Tee Higgins.
Higgins is coming up on the expiration of his rookie contract, which makes him a logical trade target. While Duke Tobin, the Cincinnati Bengals’ director of personnel, took some offense to people suggesting that Higgins could be traded, Cincinnati is going to face some tough decisions sooner than later.
The Bengals are going to have to hand out some massive contracts to Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. There may not be enough money left to sign Higgins, which would put the Bengals in a position to acquire as many assets as possible for him now instead of seeing him leave as a free agent.
What could it cost to land Higgins? The Jaguars could get very aggressive, as a suggested trade package would be a first and third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Nos. 24 and 88 overall.
Trading Higgins to one of the teams they look like they will have to battle it out in the playoffs for years to come wouldn’t be ideal, but that kind of value would be tough to pass on. Those are two premium picks that the Bengals could use to round out their roster which is getting more and more expensive by the year.
For the Jaguars, they would have arguably the best skill position group in the NFL. Not only would they be four deep at wide receiver, but they also have Evan Engram at tight end and Travis Etienne at running back. It would be a Clemson reunion as Higgins was Lawrence’s top target for two years.
