Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd has set the ideal example from Day 1 of the Zac Taylor era and has been rewarded with experiencing deep playoff runs and one Super Bowl appearance in recent years.
So it’s no shocker, then, to find out he’s taking the right approach when it comes to the fact he heads into 2023 facing free agency right after the season.
Talking with reporters this week after his return to the team, Boyd said he fully understands the long-term outlook with big deals coming for Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
“I know we’ve got to get deals done with important players like Joe and Tee,” Boyd said, according to Jay Morrison of The Athletic. “I’m good with money. I just want to see the guys that deserve it get paid. What happens in the future — hopefully, it works out for me.
“I know I’m going to be a free agent next year, and at the end of the day, it will come down to money,” he said. “I have a great, strong feeling that they will come with an offer to where it’s still going to be tough for me to leave ’cause this is my family. I spent my whole career here.”
Given the situation, it has seemed obvious wide receiver was another draft-for-need-one-year-out strategy for the Bengals when they selected Charlie Jones in the fourth round and Andrei Iosivas in the sixth.
But it’s hard to disagree with Boyd, too. While the Bengals will likely get big contracts done with Joe Burrow, Chase and Higgins over the next two offseasons, there might be enough to go around to encourage him to stay beyond 2023.
And if not? It’s clear Boyd will keep being the No. 83 Taylor and Co. have come to lean on in all respects while going from the bottom of the leauge to the top.
