The No.2 wide receiver label makes sense on the depth chart behind Ja’Marr Chase, but that doesn’t mean Tee Higgins isn’t among the best in the NFL.
Sports Illustrated ranked the Cincinnati Bengals standout No. 2 among the NFL’s best second receivers entering the 2026 season, placing only Dallas Cowboys wideout George Pickens ahead of him.
The ranking offers another reminder of the unusual standard Cincinnati has created at the position.
Higgins is called a WR2 because Chase lines up on the other side, not because his production belongs in a secondary role.
That distinction matters for a Bengals team still built around Joe Burrow and an expensive passing attack.
Cincinnati committed heavily to keeping its receiver tandem together, so Higgins’ place near the top of SI’s list shows why the front office made that choice and why his health remains central to the team’s Super Bowl hopes.
Higgins Keeps Producing Like a No. 1 Target
Higgins caught 59 passes for 846 yards and a career-high 11 touchdowns in 15 games last season. The touchdown total tied for second in the NFL and helped him earn the first Pro Bowl selection of his six-year career.
His statistical history elevates him above the WR2 label.
The Bengals credit Higgins with 5,441 receiving yards and 45 touchdowns since he entered the league as a second-round pick in 2020.
He ranks 16th in receiving yards and tied for seventh in receiving touchdowns in the NFL during that stretch.
He also owns two 1,000-yard seasons and has reached double-digit touchdowns in consecutive years.
Sports Illustrated highlighted Higgins’ work on contested catches and in the red zone while describing him as the ideal complement to Chase.
Ultimately, those skills give Burrow an answer when defenses crowd throwing lanes or force Cincinnati to win near the sideline.
At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Higgins can turn tight coverage into a favorable matchup in the areas of the field that matter most for proper execution.
Meanwhile, Pickens earned the No. 1 spot on the rankings after catching 93 passes for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns in his first season with Dallas.
His volume and explosive production made him a reasonable choice.
Higgins works in a different environment, as Chase commanded 125 receptions for 1,412 yards last season, leaving fewer opportunities for the receiver across from him.
Higgins still found the end zone more often than Pickens, whereas Pickens produced like a traditional featured receiver.
Bengals Have Paid for a Super Bowl Standard
Cincinnati settled the long-running contract question in March 2025 by signing Higgins to a four-year, $115 million extension. Chase received a four-year, $161 million extension at the same time, keeping Burrow’s top two targets under contract through the heart of his prime.
The investment removed any debate about whether the Bengals view Higgins as replaceable.
They paid him like a leading receiver because their offense asks him to perform like one whenever coverage shifts toward Chase.
The next step is putting together a complete season.
Higgins has missed multiple games in each of the past three years. And even after scoring 11 times in 2025, he finished below 1,000 yards for a third consecutive season.
Higgins set a goal of pairing 1,000 yards with at least 10 touchdowns for the first time in 2026.
That goal would strengthen Cincinnati’s case for having the league’s best receiving duo and give the Bengals more margin for error when opponents slow Chase or the offense reaches the colder, tighter games that decide playoff runs.
All things said, Higgins’ place at No. 2 says more about Cincinnati’s unusual depth at receiver than it does about his standing around the league.
On many rosters, he would already be the clear top option.
For the Bengals, the next move is getting a full season from him.
If Higgins stays healthy and reaches the numbers he has set for himself, Cincinnati’s passing attack will have every reason to remain among the NFL’s most difficult to contain.
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