Cincinnati Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki had no issues taking a little less money to catch passes from Joe Burrow.
The tight end re-signed in Cincinnati on a three-year contract worth $25.5 million, with $12 million in Year 1.
"I definitely knew that I was going to take the 'Joe Burrow tax,' " Gesicki said, referring to a discount needed to stay, . "So, I knew that, and I was like, I'm cool with it. And so, it makes it easy to come back to a place like this. … There's so many different guys (in the organization) that were in the back of my mind as I'm thinking about, you know, do I test the market?
"You hear about your value and all that kind of stuff and what it could be, and at that point, it's just like, this is what I want. I wanted to go to Cincinnati, and I wanted to be in an offense that allowed me to reach my potential, and I think that this place gives me everything I'm looking for."
With the Bengals needing to pay the likes of Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, Gesicki said he didn't want to take "too big of a chunk" of cap space.
The $8.5 million-per-year pact puts the 30-year-old Gesicki at the mid-level of his position, behind the Patriots' Hunter Henry ($9 million). Even considering he's closer to a slot receiver than an in-line blocking tight end, it's still a sizable chunk for the budget-conscious Bengals.
After a stellar start to his career, including back-to-back 700-yard seasons playing a wideout role in Miami in 2020 and 2021, Gesicki struggled to find a role in 2022 under Mike McDaniel in South Beach and 2023 in New England. In Burrow's offense, however, he got back on track, generating 665 yards and two TDs on 65 grabs last season. He might never be confused with a George Kittle-type tight end, but in the Bengals offense, Gesicki found a role.
Entering Year 8, he said he "owes a lot" to Burrow, and "having the best quarterback on planet Earth have your back" helps. The TE was one of the key players that the star QB mentioned Cincy needed to retain this offseason.
"I'm going to work my tail off every single day for the Cincinnati Bengals," Gesicki said. "But for Joe Burrow, because, I mean, he did so much for my career last year, just giving me the opportunity and believing in me and trusting me that, 'Hey, Mike's gonna win, I'm gonna throw the ball here,' when you got Ja'Marr or Tee who are attracting attention. But then off the field doing things like that, just mentioning my name and things like that. So, it was awesome."
The Bengals hung onto one piece of the offense. Now it's on to figuring out how to keep the rest of the crew happy and paid.
