Bengals WR Tee Higgins Aims for Career Best 1000-Yard, 10-TD Season
Tee Higgins has been one of the more reliable red zone receivers in the NFL over the last two seasons but the yardage numbers haven't kept pace with the touchdowns.
Coming off a 2025 campaign where he caught a career-high 11 touchdowns in 15 games, the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver knows there's still a gap to close. He finished with 846 receiving yards last season, the second-lowest total of his six-year career, and he hasn't topped 1,000 yards since 2022. That number is clearly sitting with him heading into 2026.
"I'm trying to shoot for that 1,000 yards this year," Higgins told Rob Gregson of A to Z Sports. "I missed that the last few seasons. I'm trying to get at least 10 touchdowns. Just throwing some goals out there."
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Higgins has now put up double-digit touchdowns in back-to-back seasons while the overall receiving numbers have dipped. The combination of his size, his role in Cincinnati's offense and his chemistry with Joe Burrow makes the yardage drop stand out more than it might for another receiver.
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But Higgins made it clear that personal milestones aren't the only thing driving him this offseason. The bigger target is a Super Bowl, and he pointed to late-game execution as something the Bengals need to sharpen if they're going to get there.
Closing out games has been a recurring issue. Higgins sees it as one of the more important steps between where this team is and where it wants to be.
Availability has been a real factor in holding his numbers back. Higgins played just 12 games in both 2023 and 2024 before getting to 15 last season. Burrow's own injury history during that stretch didn't help either.
When both are healthy and on the field together, the Bengals have arguably the most dangerous receiving duo in the league with Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase lined up together.
Higgins has shown what he's capable of when things click. He topped 1,000 yards in both 2021 and 2022 and has been one of Burrow's most trusted targets since entering the league in 2020. A full season with his quarterback healthy and a clear statistical goal in mind gives him every reason to put together the most complete year of his career in 2026.
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This story was originally published May 14, 2026 at 6:49 AM.