And let's not forget Brett Fucking Veach, who has been a fucking cheat code these last couple of drafts.
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We got a 1st and much more?
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They're not getting a first for Tee Higgins c'mon
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Kelce is his superstar receiver.
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I agree with your thoughts on the draft compensation. No doubt a good portion of teams sees him as a capable #1 WR in their offense. He has every tool to be just that. Someone could easily trade a 1 for him and pay him. I don't see many WRs in this draft with his physical tools. However, he didn't benefit from Chase as a rookie when he put up 900 yards, though Tyler Boyd took some pressure off of him. Like you though, I don't see a team paying more than a #1. They didn't do it for AJ Brown.

As for those thinking he won't get paid handsomely, my only issue with this thought is this:

Chris Godwin got 20m per as the #2 to Mike Evans.
Keenan Allen and Mike Williams both got 20m per, argue over the #2.
Lockett is at 17.5m per while Metcalf just got 24m per, and we can argue over the #2 there
Christian Kirk got 18 per and was never the #1.

IMO Higgins is getting over 20m whether it's from Cincy or someone else.
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Higgins and Boyd are both gone at the first chance.
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Higgins will absolutely walk. Cincy is brain dead if they don’t get something in return. Strike while the iron is hot.
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Yup. It's entirely a different situation with Diggs and Buffalo, they need him as they don't have as much. Cincy is stocked full of options. They trade Higgins, plug in Boyd and then sign and draft cheaper replacements. The Bills can't do that, especially with Josh Allen being so sporadic.
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Also to Veach. I doubt any other GM in the league hits in as many late round picks as he does. A 7th round pick used to be pretty meh, but Veach can turn that into a starter, and sometimes a damn good one. I don’t follow Cincy enough to know how they draft, and specifically in the latter rounds. But I’d imagine they’re not nearly as good as Veach is at it. And that also goes back to our coaching staff’s ability to coach up the talent they bring in via draft. Now if Skyy takes a big step this offseason, I’ll feel a lot better about Veach and drafting receivers!
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The Bengals fan is right. Kelce has the 3rd most receiving yards over the last 5 years. Only behind Adams and Hill.
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Ha. Those things are not mutually exclusive. We would have been unstoppable with Tyreek. The issue last year is we had no WR depth and no #2 or real #3. We would absolutely be better with Tyreek. Still glad now they didn't go that route as its law of diminishing returns and he's just too expensive.
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Yes, and we/KC/Mahomes will miss him when he's gone.

Hopefully Vurt Beach can work some magic.

But even without Kelce, Mahomes will still Mahomes.

Let's see about Joe Cool.
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That defense I would not want to see. With Hill still here
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Since Zac has been here, no starters after the 4th round (Volson was a 4th rnd, starting LG). Treyveon Williams and Chris Evans were both 6th rd and they should get more snaps next year when Mixon is gone. Markus Bailey (7th) and Davis-Gaither (4th) get snaps and could be fighting to take Germaine Pratt's spot if he leaves. Cam Sample (4th) is a solid rotational guy. Ossai, Logan Wilson and Pratt were all 3rd rounders.

They def need to be better than zero hits after the 4th round.
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As long as they keep him protected, Mahomes will be fine with whoever is out there. Joe needs that kind of protection for when the average guys start getting more snaps.
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