I think teams are moving away from long term management into more focus on "windows to compete". Only one team can win it each year and you have to really load the roster up to be that team. If you try to manage for the long haul, you're like to be a bridesmaid, never a bride IMO. Once you've identified that you have the right QB and enough around him to start pushing chips, in you really gotta go for it - more aggressive contract structures, paying higher trade comp for players, etc.
That's driving prices up on guys league wide. CINC has the QB and they have good pieces in place, so they're being aggressive going for the rest. Part of it is that they're not just trying to compete for a title, but also compete enough so that Burrow doesn't demand out.