Throughout the summer leading up to the regular season, we will go through the entire 2024 Cincinnati Bengals roster. Every single day until the season opener against the New England Patriots , we will break down a player on the roster including his background, contract status, and path towards making the team.
Today, we close out our offseason roster breakdown series with "Uno" himself. Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase has been the topic of conversation for the past six weeks in Cincinnati. It's only right we put a bow on everything with the only #1 in team history.
Ja'Marr Chase
- Age: 24
- Year: 4th
- Position: Wide receiver
- College: LSU
- Previous Teams: None
- Jersey Number: 1
Chase was drafted by the Bengals with the fifth overall pick in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He spent three years at LSU and only played in two of them. He started the final five games of his freshman year in 2018 and had his best game in the Fiesta Bowl, going for 93 yards and a touchdown. That game is universally looked at as the turning point for the program leading up to the dominance next season would bring. Chase and Justin Jefferson would become an unstoppable duo with Joe Burrow at quarterback in 2019. Chase topped Jefferson in receiving yards (1,780) and touchdowns (20) despite only 84 receptions to his teammate's 111. His yardage and touchdowns are an SEC single-season record, and he established both in the National Championship with 220 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions. He became LSU's second-ever Biletnikoff Award winner as the best receiver in college football, and unanimous All-American honors followed. He did all of this at age 19.
Chase opted out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 and began preparing for the NFL Draft. Not playing for an entire year did nothing to hurt his draft stock and the Bengals reunited Burrow with his top playmaker from college. Before his rookie season officially began, Chase had recurring drop issues during training camp and preseason action. He quickly quelled those concerns in his debut when he put up 101 yards and a touchdown in his debut. His rookie season was one for the history books as he set a modern NFL rookie record with 1,455 receiving yards to go with 13 touchdowns. He earned AP Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and the first of what's been three straight Pro Bowl nods.
As good as the last two years have been for Chase, his rookie season stands out as his most productive so far. The Bengals have ran into trouble getting him involved in explosive plays with opposing defenses intensely focused on keeping him in front of them. This has seen his yards per reception average out to just over 12 over the last two seasons. Injuries have also impacted him with a hip injury taking him out of four games in 2022, and a shoulder injury sidelining him for one game last year. He was still able to cross the 1,000-yard threshold and earn Pro Bowl nods in both seasons. He's one of eight receivers in league history (along with former Bengal A.J. Green) to post three straight 1,000-yard seasons to open his career, and is the Bengals' leader in yards per game at 82.6.
All of this led up to the last six weeks with the Bengals trying to extend Chase's contract. The Bengals approached Chase about getting a deal done, and his side reportedly wanted to wait until the rest of the receiver market had settled. What ensued was Chase holding-in from practicing in training camp. He made his official return to practice this week to prepare for Week 1's matchup against the New England Patriots, but listed himself as a game-time decision as a contract is near the end zone but hasn't crossed the plane just yet.
Contract details
Chase is entering the fourth year of his four-year, $30,819,642 rookie contract, but he has one more year left under contract due to the fifth-year option the Bengals exercised back in the spring. He will earn a fully guaranteed base salary of $1,055,000 for the 2024 season, and has already earned a roster bonus of $3,807,679.
Due to $7,836,130 of his signing bonus being prorated on the books this year, Chase's cap number for the season is a team-high $9,806,250.
Roster outlook
Joe Burrow's recovery, Tee Higgins' trade requests, and every other Bengals storyline from this eternal offseason faded into the shadows when Chase's hold-in began. It's been six long weeks awaiting to see if the Bengals can lock in their most talented player on the roster. This profile was saved for the very end so accurate contract details could be added. Silly me!
Chase left the door open to potentially miss Sunday's opener, but he did say he'd play this season without a contract. I'm not of the opinion that he will miss any game he physically cannot play in, but more clarity would certainly help.
A day remains until kickoff and no final resolution has been reached. It'll happen when it happens.
Projected role: Starting wide receiver
Previous player breakdowns
Related: Ja'Marr Chase puts the ball in the Bengals' court after breaking media silence
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