The Cincinnati Bengals, unsurprisingly, won’t ignore the phone if teams call about a Tee Higgins trade.

Saturday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler appeared on “SportsCenter” and said the Bengals have been open to calls on that subject (h/t Adam Wells of Bleacher Report):

“He wants out, he has made the trade request. I talked to a few teams who are interested who believe that the Bengals are at least willing to listen. That’s a little softer than they might have been a year ago where they definitely were not trading him. So, teams are going to try to pry him out. New England’s been high-end shopping for receiver help, perhaps they try to give up a Day 2 pick to get Higgins.”

The Bengals applied the $21.7 million franchise tag to Higgins early in the process and ahead of the scouting combine, though Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin attributed the quick tag to the increase in the NFL’s salary cap and not a desire to talk trades.

A report after the Bengals tagged Higgins said they didn’t hear much about a trade from other teams at the combine. The Carolina Panthers, a team that stockpiled extra draft picks recently, reportedly hasn’t contacted Cincinnati about Higgins.

Still, how the Bengals have talked about a Higgins trade compared to just one season ago is quite different and listening to what other teams might be willing to give up would make sense.

The looming threat of a second franchise tag next offseason after the dramatic salary cap increase could be an interesting factor to remember in the background here. The Bengals and Higgins have until mid-July to work out a contract extension, otherwise he’ll play the season on the tag.