Cincinnati Bengals: Ja’Marr Chase proves preseason doubters wrong
By Evan Bruner
After a poor showing in the preseason, Cincinnati Bengals 2021 first round-pick Ja’Marr Chase shined in his NFL debut against the Minnesota Vikings, proving preseason doubters wrong.
It’s not very often you see a rookie wide receiver under so much pressure entering the first game of his career. But the circumstances of Ja’Marr Chase’s first handful of months for the Cincinnati Bengals warranted some concerns. After being taken fifth overall, Ja’Marr Chase struggled in the preseason with a flurry of drops. It didn’t make much sense. A player who was described as one of the best receiving prospects in the NFL looked lost and out of place.
The Cincinnati Bengals fan base was already split on Chase from day one, with many fans preferring Oregon offensive linemen Penei Sewell to fill the team’s holes at offensive line and after his struggles in the preseason, Chase didn’t exactly do anything to win them over.
Chase’s preseason struggles were a big story throughout the league. Chase was drafted to be his team’s number one receiver from day one, and many fans were skeptical if he was truly ready for that responsibility. As important as preseason games are for rookie players to get NFL experience, the games themselves mean very little long-term, and even if Chase didn’t showcase his talent in those games, it didn’t mean it wasn’t there.
All it took was one game of regular season football for Chase to put his preseason woes behind him. With former college teammate Joe Burrow throwing him the football, Chase looked more like the wide receiver who terrorized opposing defenses at LSU than the one that showed up in Cincinnati’s preseason games. Burrow connected with Chase for a 50-yard touchdown late in the first half to put the Bengals up 14-7. Chase finished the game with five catches for a game-high 101 yards and a touchdown on seven targets and played a crucial role in the Bengals’ 27-24 win against the Vikings.
In just one game, Chase was able to show everything that made him such a highly coveted prospect leading into the draft. He flashed his big-play ability on the touchdown and finished the game averaging over 20 yards per catch. He was also able to create separation from opposing defensive backs pretty consistently and didn’t seem to have any issue holding onto the ball like he did in the preseason.
It’s only one game, but Ja’Marr Chase gave the Cincinnati Bengals a lot to be excited about.
After going for over 100 yards in the season opener, Chase has put himself in the thick of what is likely to be a loaded offensive rookie of the year race. Given his relationship with Burrow, Chase should have ample opportunities to put up numbers in the Bengals offense.
Although Ja’Marr Chase still has a lot more he will need to accomplish to live up to his monstrous pre-draft expectations, this game was very important for him to get his confidence back and put a stop to the overreactions from the preseason.