The positions that need to be addressed first and foremost for the Patriots this upcoming offseason are very clear and have been all season long. Near the top of the list is wide receiver, which has been an issue for the offense for a few years but has become especially important now that the seemingly have their quarterback in Drake Maye.
With a league-high cap space to spend and desirable draft positioning, there has been plenty of debate regarding New England's best route to address the receiving corps, with pending free agent Tee Higgins leading the conversation as the most desirable player to sign. He has been on the team's radar over the past two years since the Bengals have decided not to offer a contract extension, and that is expected to happen next year as well.
If that's the case, he finally becomes available and immediately at the top of the list of free agent receivers that teams will hope to sign. The Patriots are in a good spot, as they can likely offer him the most money.
But their efforts might not even come to fruition based on how Higgins performed in Week 17. He essentially put the offense on his back and ensured the Bengals remained in the playoff race.
Tee Higgins might have locked down a future contract with the Bengals from his impressive Week 17 game
Even before free agency begins, there has been speculation about how the Bengals might approach the situation with Higgins. Some believe they won't just let him walk and instead franchise tag him (again) in hopes of trading him.
That seemed to be what they wanted to do this year, or use the tag to give them more time to agree to an extension, only for neither scenario to happen. That led to Higgins demanding a trade from the team twice in the offseason, to no avail, and it's presumed that will be the case if the Bengals tag him again next year.
That throws a wrench in the Patriots' plans to go after the receiver in free agency, but it could also be a problem if the Bengals realize Higgins' importance to the offense after another impressive showing last week. He recorded 11/12 receptions for 131 yards and three touchdowns, one of which was the game-winning score in overtime.
With quarterback Joe Burrow consistently advocating for his return and another game where he stepped up to the plate over Ja'Marr Chase, on top of Higgins' latest comments on his teammates, which includes sharing an agent with Chase that may convince Cincinnati he needs to stay on the team long-term and strip the Patriots of an opportunity to convince him to sign with them.
However, it doesn't completely negate that possibility if the Bengals franchise tags him and wants to trade him. That still opens the door for New England to get a deal done, but it's less likely that would work instead of throwing a blank check at him as a free agent.