The Buffalo Bills have been a perennial contender in the NFL over the past handful of seasons. Still, their Super Bowl aspirations (and window) continue to fall short following yet another agonizing defeat in the AFC Championship game.
The team diversified their passing attack after letting both Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis walk, and it ended up leading to Josh Allen’s first NFL MVP season. He accomplished this by getting contributions from the likes of Khalil Shakir, Mack Hollins, and rookie Keon Coleman, along with tight ends Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox. They also added veteran Amari Cooper mid-season, though he fell by the wayside more times than not.
If he can have an MVP season with no true No. 1 receiver, imagine what he can accomplish with a player in the prime of his career. Furthermore, if the Bills want to capitalize on their championship window, they need to make a bold move this offseason, and trading for Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins would be just that.
NFL Analyst Predicts Buffalo Bills Find a True WR1 In Tee Higgins
ESPN’s Aaron Schatz predicted one bold move for each NFL team this offseason, and his proposed deal for the Bills is trading for Higgins.
“Originally, my advice to Buffalo was just to sign the receiver. Now that the Bengals are planning to give Higgins the franchise tag for the second straight offseason, the Bills need to produce a trade offer so strong that the Bengals don’t want to turn it down,” Schatz wrote.
“Higgins was set to be the best free agent wide receiver, by far… Higgins is a No. 1 receiver in search of a No. 1 opportunity. Meanwhile, the Bills need a No. 1 receiver. They need someone quarterback Josh Allen can depend on; someone they can confidently go to on third down to move the chains.
“Khalil Shakir had 821 yards last season, but he’s a slot receiver. They didn’t have an outside receiver with more than 600 yards. Higgins would fit perfectly as the leader of their wide receiver room and give them what they need to finally reach the Super Bowl.”
Over the past few seasons, the Bills have gone from a more pass-friendly offense to a more run-heavy style under offensive coordinator Joe Brady. The Bills did not have a single player reach 1000 receiving yards last season, and Mack Hollins led the team with just five receiving touchdowns.
On the other hand, Higgins had 911 yards in just 12 games, and his 10 touchdowns were tied for sixth most in the entire league. He is also PFSN’s No. 1 available free agent in our Top 100 Free Agent Rankings.
At 6’4″ and 219 pounds, Higgins is a big-bodied receiver who thrives in contested catch situations and can stretch the field. This makes him an ideal red-zone target for Allen and is an area that the Bills will surely focus on this offseason if they want to finally overcome the Kansas City Chiefs hurdle.
His presence would not only take pressure off Allen but also create mismatches that can allow a player like Shakir to thrive even more in the slot. Higgins’s size and physicality as a strong blocker on the perimeter would also help boost the ninth-ranked rushing offense.
What Would It Cost To Bring In Higgins?
Trading for Higgins won’t come cheap, especially if the Bengals decide to franchise tag him for a second straight year. There’s also the argument that Cincinnati wouldn’t trade him to a contending team within the conference.
The Bills traded down in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and the Chiefs ended up selecting Xavier Worthy, who led all receivers in the playoffs in receiving yards. The Bills would likely need to part with a first-round pick, or second-round and possibly more, to acquire him. However, given Buffalo’s current roster construction and championship aspirations, the investment would be extremely worthwhile.
The team would also need to explore a sign-and-trade scenario to secure Higgins on a long-term deal. He’s expressed publicly that he wants to get paid, and the idea of going to another team that puts him in the same situation he’s currently in makes zero sense.
Time To Cure the Insanity
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Fans and players in Buffalo have been yearning for the team to get back to the Super Bowl since they appeared in a record four consecutive Super Bowls from 1991-1994, losing on each occasion.
If the Bills want to transform themselves from one of the top teams in the AFC into a team that reaches the mountaintop, they need to make a giant splash this offseason. Trading for Tee Higgins would be a game-changing move that would provide Josh Allen with a reliable No. 1 receiver and help transform the Bills’ offense into one of the most dangerous in the NFL.
With Cincinnati facing financial constraints, Buffalo has a prime opportunity to land a top-tier receiver who can help push them over the top. Now is the time for the Bills to go all in and make a move that could help define their Super Bowl pursuit.
