CINCINNATI — The second the word was spoken, Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins wouldn’t even entertain the thought.

When asked about the team’s potential if Higgins can stay healthy for an entire season, he immediately pushed back on the qualifying conjunction. After signing a long-awaited contract extension to solidify his standing in Cincinnati, Higgins was clear about his intentions for the upcoming season.

“I plan on staying healthy,” Higgins said. “Let’s not say ‘if.’ Let’s not do that. It’s too early to be doing that. I plan on it.

“When I do, [the offense] definitely could be deadly.”

Last season, Higgins battled multiple soft-tissue injuries. He missed the first two games with a hamstring issue and three games in the middle of the year with a quadriceps injury. In 2023, a hamstring problem kept Higgins off the field for four games.

But the injury history didn’t stop quarterback Joe Burrow from stumping for Higgins to get a contract extension with the Bengals, which Cincinnati obliged this offseason. Higgins signed a four-year deal with Cincinnati worth $115 million.

In 12 games last season, Higgins had 73 catches for 911 yards and a career-high 10 touchdowns. But the advanced numbers show just how important he is to Cincinnati’s offense.

When he was not on the field last season, the Bengals ranked 21st in the NFL in Expected Points Added per play, according to ESPN Research. With Higgins on the field, Cincinnati would have ranked at least fourth in the league in that category.

Last year, Higgins told reporters that he planned on undertaking the same studies as Green Bay Packers receiver Christian Watson to discover the source of the injuries. Speaking to reporters after Tuesday’s voluntary organized team activity, Higgins said he instead opted to analyze the issue with David Alexander, his trainer who is based out of Miami.

“I looked at it with my trainer and we’ve been doing things that prevent those injuries happening,” said Higgins, who declined to get into the specifics of that work.

However, the sixth-year player out of Clemson revealed that there will be a change in his pre-practice routine that emphasizes stretching and less tension on the muscles ahead of a midweek practice. Higgins indicated that it was similar to his midweek practice management last season that allowed him to play the final seven games of the season.

Cincinnati is positioned to have one of the NFL’s best passing attacks given the investment level in recent years. Two years after Cincinnati gave Burrow a five-year extension worth $55 million a year, the Bengals re-signed Higgins and fellow wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase. Chase turned a historic All-Pro season into a four-year extension worth $161 million, which made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in league history.

Higgins loved the possibility of joining Chase as a Pro Bowl selection. Chase, who was drafted a year after Higgins with the fifth overall pick, has earned the honor in each of his first four NFL seasons.

But after missing the playoffs the past two seasons, Higgins’ primary focus is to help the Bengals win games.

Said Higgins: “I want to go do what they paid me to do.”