The best teams across the league are always proactive when it comes to roster management and building.
When they have a young player they want to develop, the great teams look to give him a long-term extension as soon as possible. This way, they can get some immediate cap relief and be the first to lock in a player in an increasing market.
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Other teams who struggle with the cap choose to wait on those extensions and are forced to reset the market with their top talent. A contract that could have been worth $30 million instead balloons to $40 million.
The Cincinnati Bengals learned that lesson the hard way this weekend. With their young talent due for extensions, the New York Jets will soon better understand that as well.
Cincinnati dished out over $200 million in contract extensions to wide receivers Tee Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase Sunday night. Chase's deal is now the richest contract for a non-QB in all of sports.
Higgins, meanwhile is the highest contract for a second wide receiver on any roster. In total, the Bengals are paying their two receivers and quarterback Joe Burrow a combined annual average of nearly $120 million.
All because they waited until Higgins and Chase entered their deals' final years.
New York has plenty of top young talent of their own. Wide receiver Garrett Wilson, cornerback Sauce Gardner, and running back Breece Hall are all eligible for extensions.
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So far, those extensions have not been done. And that leaves New York with the real struggle of having to negotiate with their top talent in a market that is skyrocketing by the day.
New York could wait for some of these deals to stop and negotiate in good faith with their stars. But that will only mean the price will continue to balloon before they even get to the negotiating table.
It's why Cincinnati should be used as a lesson this offseason - not as a model. It's a lesson the Jets could find themselves in if they aren't more proactive at this rate.
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This story was originally published March 17, 2025 at 4:00 PM.