Ja’Marr Chase is a starting wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals. Initially committing to the University of Kansas, Chase enrolled at LSU to play his college football. After a nondescript true freshman campaign in 2018, he and quarterback Joe Burrow carried the Tigers to a magical run in 2019 that concluded with a National Championship win against Clemson and Trevor Lawrence. After a breakout year that saw him catch 84 balls for 1,780 yards and 20 touchdowns, as well as win the Fred Biletnikoff award as college football’s best wide receiver, Chase opted out of the 2020 season to prepare for the 2021 NFL Draft.
Ja’Marr Chase brought the proverbial house down at his Pro Day. His athleticism metrics include a 4.34 40 time, 135.7 (97th-percentile) Burst Score, 10.95 (81st-percentile) Agility Score, and a 10.29 (94th-percentile) Catch Radius. At the behest of his Cincinnati franchise quarterback and college teammate Burrow, the Bengals made Chase the fifth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. After widespread speculation regarding whether the team should have picked blue chip offensive lineman Penei Sewell, the decision was made to reunite the 2019 National Championship-winning duo.
Chase’s contract is a four-year, $30,819,641 deal. It includes a 19,774,284 signing bonus, $30,819,641 guaranteed, and a $7,704,910 average annual salary. He carries a max cap hit of $9,806,250 in the 2024 season.
It’s safe to say that Chase earned his contract, and then some, during his exceptional rookie year. His first career game against the Minnesota Vikings saw him haul in five passes for 101 yards and a touchdown, good for 20.9 (No. 15) fantasy points. With three more scores over the next two weeks, he became the youngest player in league history to score four times in his first three games. And that was only the beginning. He logged seven triple-digit receiving yard performances, including two with over 200 yards, a league record for most receiving yards in a game from a rookie, and a franchise-record 1,454 (No. 14) receiving yards to go along with his 13 (No. 4) touchdowns. He helped lead the Bengals through all of the AFC’s top-seeded teams and into the team’s first Super Bowl in 33 years, where they fell 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams despite his five catches for 89 yards. Though his team didn’t win it all, he can take solace in the fact that he set a rookie postseason record with 368 total receiving yards.
Logging an 86.1-percent (No. 14) Snap Share and 536 (No. 12) Routes Run, Chase boasted 1,532 (No. 9) Air Yards, 30 (No. 3) Deep Targets, a 23.7-percent (No. 23) Target Share, and a 17.9 (No. 5) Fantasy Points Per Game average. Leading the position with a +20.5 Production Premium was the highlight among many impressive efficiency metrics; which also included 125.2 (No. 2) Expected Points Added, a 136.0 (No. 4) QB Rating When Targeted, and 2.38 (No. 5) Fantasy Points Per Target. The sky's the limit for one of the league’s pre-eminent playmakers; one whose ADP should be safely nestled into the first round of all league formats for the next decade-plus.
