NFL Rumors: Bengals FA Tyler Boyd, Titans Reach 1-Year Contract; Updated Salary Cap

Tyler Boyd will be donning a different uniform for the first time in his NFL career.

The veteran wide receiver agreed to a one-year contract worth up to $4.5 million with the Tennessee Titans, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, after having spent the last eight seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Titans had $30.8 million in available salary cap space, so the move does little to impact their finances.

Boyd entered the open market at the wrong time. He caught 67 passes for 667 yards and two touchdowns in 2023, with his 39.2 yards per game his lowest since 2017. His 10.0 yards per reception were a personal low as well.

The 29-year-old went on quite the journey in Cincinnati. A second-round pick in 2016, he was on hand for the end of the Marvin Lewis era. Then the Bengals won six combined games in Zac Taylor's first two seasons before making a Cinderella run to Super Bowl LVI.

"It's kind of a movie because we started super low, wasn't good enough, and I stuck around," he said upon the conclusion of the 2023 campaign. "I always continued to battle and make plays and be there for my teammates and our team.

"We got different players in and we got good, and we ended up making runs to the Super Bowl, AFC Championship and ... it was just something I've always wanted. And now I'm at this stage in my life, I'm not sure what's gonna happen."

Boyd is fourth all time in franchise history in receptions (513), and he's seventh in receiving yards (6,000). When it came time to weigh his future in Southwest Ohio, the front office had to take a dispassionate view of the situation, though.

Boyd's production has steadily declined since he had the second of his back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons in 2019. That coincided with the arrival of Tee Higgins in 2020 and then Ja'Marr Chase in 2021. While a dependable option in the slot, the 6'2" pass-catcher was no longer a vital piece of the passing game.

Boyd also hit free agency at the same time as Higgins, while Chase will in line for a new contract before too long. It simply wasn't feasible to keep the three together, and Boyd was the most expendable. Even Higgins could be a casualty of the salary cap if his price tag climbs too high.

And for Boyd, the point at which you give the Bengals a hometown discount has passed. This will in all likelihood be his last best opportunity to cash out, so maximizing his earning power was a priority.

Because he got overshadowed by Higgins and Chase, those who didn't regularly watch Cincinnati games or follow the team before 2020 might have failed to properly account for Boyd's value to the offense.

He should make an immediate impact for the Titans, and his departure from Cincinnati leaves an obvious void.

Tennessee already made a big splash by signing Calvin Ridley to a four-year, $92 million deal, and they have DeAndre Hopkins back. For the team to sign Boyd looks from the outside like an indictment of 2022 first-round draft pick Treylon Burks.

Burks has caught 49 passes for 665 yards and one touchdown through 22 games, which is undoubtedly an underwhelming return so far. Considering both the head coach and general manager who drafted him are both gone, his days in Nashville could be numbered.