After holding in for much of training camp and the preseason, superstar wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase looks to be ready for game action when the Cincinnati Bengals open the 2024 season next weekend against the New England Patriots.
According to ESPN’s Ben Baby, when Bengals coach Zac Taylor was asked if he was confident in Chase playing the Week 1 game he simply responded with, “yes.”
There was some debate as to whether or not Chase would be available for the season opener after he did not participate in training-camp practices or the preseason while trying to get a new contract extension from the team. But Taylor also added that Chase has looked good on the practice field since returning this week.
“I think it gives you the visual of what it’s going to look and feel like for us,” Taylor said. “It’s been good to get him back in the mix the last couple of days.”
Chase, one of the NFL’s best wide receivers, has two years remaining on his rookie deal and was looking to join the pass-catchers around the league who have cashed in this offseason.
He and the team were unable to come to terms on a new deal.
Chase has topped the 1,000-yard mark in each of his first three seasons in the NFL and is coming off a 2023 season that saw him catch 100 passes for 1,216 yards and seven touchdowns. He posted those numbers despite the team’s starting quarterback, Joe Burrow, never really being 100 percent and missing the final half of the season.
With Burrow back healthy and Chase back on the field, the Bengals should have extremely high expectations going into this season.
