What You Need to Know:

• Higgins finished 13th in PPR points per game among WRs last season, despite Ja’Marr Chase’s arrival. He checked in 19th in targets per game.
• In their 18 shared games last season (including the playoffs), Higgins trailed Chase 21.7% vs. 23.4% in target share.
• That rate was still up vs. the 18.2% target share that Higgins drew from Week 2-10 in 2020, games with him in a starting role and a healthy Joe Burrow.
• Both Higgins and Chase finished well ahead of Tyler Boyd (15%) in that category.
• Higgins’ 21.7% target share in healthy games would have ranked just 30th among WRs for the 2021 season. It would have checked in 17th in 2020.
• The 2021 Bengals increased their passing lean during the season. The 1st 3 games found them ranking last in the league twice in neutral-situation pass rate, according to RBSDM.com, and 16th the other week. Tee Higgins returned in Week 5 from 2 games lost to a shoulder injury. From that game through the playoffs, Cincinnati went 8th most pass-heavy in neutral situations.
• Cincinnati’s pass rate over that span: 55.5%. Each of the Bengals’ 4 playoff games found the team passing at a rate of 58.8% or higher in neutral situations.
• Higgins improved his catch rate, receptions per game and yards per reception in his 2nd season. His TD rate decreased slightly, falling short of 10% for the 2nd straight year.
• Higgins tied for a mere 17th among WRs in end-zone targets, but he trailed Chase by only 2 in that category – despite playing 2 fewer games (excluding the meaningless Week 18 contest).

Draft Sharks Bottom Line:

Higgins’ future target shares got capped the moment Cincinnati drafted Ja’Marr Chase, who delivered historic production as a rookie. But Higgins still made his way to the cusp of WR1 territory, despite an offense that ranked only 20th in pass attempts. The Bengals should be throwing more in 2022 after trending in that direction over the 2nd half of last year. Higgins sits in good position to continue producing above-average efficiency on catches and yards and has upside left in TD rate. He’s appropriately priced in early drafting.