Ja’Marr Chase at odds with Bengals over contract?

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (1) walks for the locker room after the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 3 game between the New York Jets and the Cincinnati Bengals at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. Credit: Sam Greene/The Enquirer/USA TODAY NETWORK

Ja’Marr Chase has not participated in padded practices during training camp this offseason as he seeks a new contract, but he could now be looking to turn up the pressure on the Cincinnati Bengals even more.

Chase was absent from practice on Tuesday, which marked a change in the way he has handled the situation. Head coach Zac Taylor said after the session that Chase is “day-to-day” and that the team will “take it one day at a time” with the star wide receiver.

ESPN’s Jeff Darlington indicated on “SportsCenter” Tuesday that Chase and the Bengals are not close to an extension.

“Suddenly, what felt like a hold-in now feels like a holdout, because Ja’Marr Chase was not at practice which is different than what we’ve seen from him since the start of training camp. So, again, at a time when we’re talking about Brandon Aiyuk and CeeDee Lamb and once again another wide receiver in Ja’Marr Chase, we just are not seeing the movement on these contracts in the wake of Justin Jefferson’s deal,” Darlington said. “To me, I expected as I think many others, once one domino fell, so too would the rest of them. The Bengals are making it very clear that they are not ready to pull the trigger on the magnitude of that type of deal, which obviously has caught the NFL off guard.”

As Darlington mentioned, Justin Jefferson reset the wide receiver market when he signed a 4-year, $140 million deal that includes $110 million guaranteed. That was a record for a non-quarterback. Chase had made it clear last year that he would use Jefferson’s deal as a benchmark in his own negotiations .

Chase is in the fourth year of his rookie contract, and the Bengals have exercised his projected $21.8 million option for next season. That gives them more time than the Cowboys have with their star receiver , but it sounds like Chase does not want to wait.

Just three years into his NFL career, Chase has established himself as one of the game’s elite wide receivers. He had 100 catches for 1,216 yards and 7 touchdowns last season even with Joe Burrow missing significant time. The Bengals are eventually going to have to pay him top dollar if they want to keep him.

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