Bengals' Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins reportedly absent from voluntary OTAs

The Cincinnati Bengals are going through voluntary OTAs without their two star wide receivers, Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

Both receivers are absent from Bengals headquarters as they seek new contracts, according to ESPN.

Chase is now extension-eligible, while Higgins was franchise tagged and requested a trade earlier this offseason.

Chase, a Pro Bowler in each of his three seasons in the NFL, totaled a career-high 100 receptions for 1,216 yards and seven touchdowns last season. He has been Cincinnati's No. 1 receiver in each of the past three seasons.

Higgins was limited to 12 games due to injury last season. Across said games, he totaled 42 receptions for 656 yards and five touchdowns. Higgins previously totaled 1,000-plus receiving yards in both 2021 and 2022.

Outside of Chase and Higgins, Cincinnati's wide receiver room includes Trenton Irwin, 2023 draft picks Andrei Iosivas and Charlie Jones and 2024 third-round draft pick Jermaine Burton, among others. It lost veteran Tyler Boyd to the Tennessee Titans in free agency.

Elsewhere, the Bengals traded running back Joe Mixon to the Houston Texans, signing Zack Moss to fill the void. They also signed former New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins tight end Mike Gesicki to a one-year deal.

Cincinnati missed the playoffs last season for the first time since 2020, a season low-lighted by star quarterback Joe Burrow suffering a season-ending wrist injury in November.

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