#like ok john elaborate more on this “bond that doesn't quite exist anywhere else”

[realtapiocafan]

sports articles can be so romantic sometimes

Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, at the end of the day, are friends who want to stay together. Does it need to be any more complicated than that? Obviously winning is important. Both of them clearly want that after coming so close to hoisting a Lombardi three years ago. Getting paid their worth matters too. It's what ultimately drives most decisions for players in the league. When you can accomplish both of that together, as genuine friends, why wouldn't you? I know receivers are often typecasted as divas. The examples are in no short supply. For anyone who doesn't understand why the Bengals are investing so much of their money into both of these guys at the same time, consider the fact that it's what both of them wanted. Demanded, even.   There's a level of respect here that's objectively uncommon. To everyone, Chase is the guy of the duo. The numbers speak for themselves in that regard. He's never been short on confidence as someone who set out to break every Cincinnati record the night he was drafted. That same guy wouldn't allow Higgins to be labeled as his No. 2.  "1A." This is as rare as it gets. Clearly, the NFL did not expect the Bengals to actually go through with this. You never see two players of this caliber sign contracts of this magnitude together, pretty much simultaneously. You never hear about that kind of ultimatum in negotiations.  You've never seen a duo quite like Chase and Higgins. No one has. Other teams have put together and paid high-caliber receiver tandems. The Miami Dolphins traded for and paid Tyreek Hill a year after drafting Jaylen Waddle. The Philadelphia Eagles did the same with A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith. The combination of cheap rookie and expensive veteran for each eventually turned into two expensive veterans. No one bothered to think it was preposterous. But when the Bengals draft and develop their duo organically and decide to pay both of them at once, everyone loses their minds. It's hard to grasp why that is, especially when you understand why both players pushed for it in the first place. We may not see another team duplicate this strategy. I mean, it's unlikely any team can draft two receivers as good as Higgins and Chase in back-to-back years anyways, but the decision to pay them both at the same time may not even be possible. Maybe it can only happen if both players will it to existence. Maybe it takes the bond that Chase and Higgins share; a bond that doesn't quite exist anywhere else.