The New England Patriots struck out on signing a wide receiver in free agency. They wanted Calvin Ridley, but he ultimately chose to join the Tennessee Titans.

It kind of seemed like it was Ridley or bust for the Patriots, who were unable to pivot after Ridley spurned them. New England will also almost surely use its No. 3 overall pick on a quarterback next month, so it won’t be landing a receiver like Marvin Harrison Jr. in the NFL Draft.

Of course, the Pats can always take a receiver (or receivers, plural) in the other rounds of the draft, but given how urgent their situation is at that possible, they may also want to consider a trade.

Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox thinks the Patriots are a potential destination for Cincinnati Bengals wide out Tee Higgins, who requested to be dealt earlier this offseason.

The Bengals slapped a franchise tag on Higgins, preventing him from reaching free agency. This did not sit all that well with Higgins, possibly because he feels that Cincinnati has no intention of trying to reach a long-term deal with him before the mid-July deadline.

Remember: the Bengals are already paying quarterback Joe Burrow $55 million annually, and they also have to extend fellow receiver Ja’Marr Chase.

It seems relatively unlikely that Cincy will pay two receivers top dollar, which makes Higgins a somewhat viable trade candidate between now and the start of next season.

That being said, the Bengals are legitimate contenders in the AFC, so they may just want to keep Higgins around for one more year to try and win a Super Bowl.

But if Cincinnati does decide that moving Higgins will be the best course of action this offseason, the Patriots should absolutely be at the front of the line.

Higgins had a disappointing year in 2023, playing in just 12 games due to injury and logging just 42 catches for 656 yards and five touchdowns, but he posted back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns in 2021 and 2022 as the Bengals’ No. 2 receiver behind Chase.

Imagine what kind of numbers he can post as a team’s No. 1? That’s exactly what he would be in New England, too, and he is still just 25 years old.

We’ll see if the Pats make a run at Tee Higgins in the lead-up to the NFL Draft.