Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor still remembers the first route that wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase ran in 7-on-7 drills in June.
During minicamp in a practice where the Bengals weren’t in full pads, Chase ran a 10-yard speed out route from the slot. Chase had such great timing, speed and acceleration that hadn’t previously existed on the team during Taylor’s tenure with the Bengals.
“I saw right then that we’ve got something here that we expected to have,” Taylor said.
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The decision to draft Chase was the defining moment of the Bengals 2021 offseason. It was a statement about Taylor’s vision for the offense and the need to create explosive plays. Last season, the Bengals completed five passes of 40-or-more yards. This year, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is tied for second in the NFL with 15.
While some of that progress has been about wide receiver Tee Higgins’ evolution catching contested passes, Chase is the biggest reason why the Bengals offense has become of the most explosive in the NFL.
“You’re able to get the ball out faster because guys can win quicker, because you’ve got those playmakers that can make those types of plays,” Taylor said. “It’s allowed us to be more explosive, score more points, put more pressure on the defense and allowed us to get to the Super Bowl.”
It only takes five plays to define how quickly Chase evolved from a receiver who was dealing with drops in the preseason into a top-5 receiver in the NFL.
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This wasn’t the first deep reception or the most contested deep reception that Chase made in his first month in the NFL. But it was the most notable sign of how quickly he was adjusting to the speed of the NFL and the complexity of its defenses.
Before the snap, Chase walked up to Burrow in the huddle.
“I was just telling him what I had seen from the corner and what I expected (the corner) to do and what Joe should do in that situation,” Chase said. “I was just giving him thoughts on what we needed to do.”
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Chase noticed that the Steelers weren’t sending safety help toward the sideline. He knew he had a size advantage over cornerback James Pierre, and Chase saw an opportunity to create separation down the sideline.
Chase made a finger-tip catch in stride at the goal line. He won the route right at the start with a quick jump at the line of scrimmage, and Chase was a step in front of Pierre the entire way. At the goal line, Chase turned his body to keep Pierre out of the play.
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“Ja'Marr just out-physicaled him and got to the ball,” Burrow said. “That's why you draft a guy like that, to make those plays.”
Week 5: Ja’Marr Chase shows he’s more than just a deep threat
By this point of the season, the Bengals knew Chase was one of the best in the NFL at catching a deep pass down the field. But Chase was still showing how well-rounded he could be as a rookie wide receiver.
On fourth-and-1 from the 40-yard line, Burrow found running back Mixon for a quick pass to the right sideline. Without Chase, Mixon would have simply gotten the first down. But Chase blocked down the field with the same effort that he uses on deep routes down the field. He ran step-for-step with Mixon and unloaded a block with his shoulder on Lions safety Will Harris.
“You see a lot of effort on that play,” Chase said. “Joe Mixon was probably maybe 7-10 yards in front of me and I saw him, only one person ahead of him. So I wanted to make it easier for him to score by making an easy block.”
All season, Taylor has said that he judges Chase on much more than his receiving yards. Another one of Taylor’s favorite plays of the season came in Denver when Chase blew up a safety with a block in the middle of the field on a run early in the game.
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Taylor said the Bengals wide receivers’ willingness to block is one of his favorite parts of the team.
“We’ve got talented receivers,” Taylor said. “A lot has been made of their big-play production, their catches, their dances and all that stuff but they’re selfless. They’re very selfless. They care about their teammates. And I can tell, Ja’Marr just in his eyes outside (the locker room), how excited he was for Joe Mixon to score that touchdown there.”
Week 7: Ja’Marr Chase spins for an 82-yard touchdown
This was the game that showed Chase was becoming one of the best receivers in the NFL. The Baltimore Ravens guarded Chase with All-Pro cornerback Marlon Humphrey and also used a safety on Chase’s side of the field.
For most of the first half, Burrow adjusted to the coverage and targeted Higgins. But when Chase started winning underneath routes against Humphrey, the game plan changed.
In the third quarter, Chase displayed all of his strengths in one play. With Humphrey in press coverage, Chase faked that he was going to run down the sideline inside Humphrey’s left shoulder. Then Chase swiped his hand to create separation and cut inside to the middle of the field.
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Chase caught the ball five yards past the line of scrimmage, broke three tackles, hit a spin move and sprinted down the field for a touchdown.
“I knew my release and what I wanted to do before I ran the route,” Chase said. “I’ve been watching (Marlon) Humphrey’s film day and night to get the best idea I can have of him.”
In the game that the Bengals announced themselves as Super Bowl contenders, Chase led the way with 201 yards.
“They were playing on top and press, and so that’s what opened up the back shoulder balls today,” Burrow said. “(Chase and I have) thrown back shoulders for the last three years and thrown them over and over and over again.”
Week 17: Joe Burrow finds Ja’Marr Chase on third and 27
There aren’t many wide receivers who could have beaten press coverage as quickly as Chase did and reached the first down line before the Kansas Chiefs reached the pocket. With Chase, nearly any throw is possible.
“If you’re going to play him one-on-one, a lot of times it’s going to be a long day for you,” Burrow said.
On the game-winning drive that clinched the division, Burrow threw a go-route down the right sideline to Chase on third and 27. Without that play, the Bengals would have had to attempt a 58-yard go-ahead field goal.
Chase made the play work anyway, just like he had all season. He finished the game with a career-high 266 receiving yards.
“The defensive back was pressing me all game and trying to slow me down at the line of scrimmage,” Chase said. “My official release was supposed to be inside, but I took the outside release to make things a little faster. I was able to separate and make the catch."
Round 2: Chase finds the 'bench' to set up the game-winning field goal
Even though the Tennessee Titans double-teamed Chase for nearly the entire second half of the second round of the playoffs, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor called a play for Chase to set up the game-winning field goal.
On first-and-10 from the Bengals 47-yard line, Chase ran a bench route toward the right sideline. At the line of scrimmage, Chase did a quick jump and swiped his hands to get inside cornerback Janoris Jenkins’ outside shoulder.
Chase had the cornerback taken care of, and now he needed to get open against the safety. For three steps, Chase cut his route toward the middle of the field. As the Titans safety started backpedaling, Chase made a quick cut back toward the left sideline.
By the time Chase turned, Burrow’s pass was on the way. Chase caught the ball at the Titans 34-yard line, which set up the game-winning kick.
“(The defender) jumped inside me,” Chase said. “I thought that was a good job by him. That's what I wanted him to do, jump inside me. Gave him a good inside stick. Stacked him. Gave him a step at the top to create separation and keep the angle high. And Joe (Burrow) threw me open.”
When Chase faced the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game with his Week 17 performance still fresh in everybody’s mind, the Chiefs double teamed him as aggressively as any team this season.
“They played a lot of cloud (double team zones) on me,” Chase said. “The cornerbacks played outside technique on me and the safeties were running all on top of me pretty fast early and often.”
The Chiefs double team on Chase created single coverage for Higgins, who led the Bengals with 103 receiving yards. Chase still made three of the most important catches of the game. Chase had a reception near the right sideline on a scramble drill for a first down that Taylor said changed the game, a touchdown on a fade into the back of the end zone and one that set up a go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter.
Twenty-one games into Chase’s NFL career, it’s clear that there’s no stopping him.
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