CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase has accomplished enough in his first four seasons in the league that Thursday night’s performance in Baltimore shouldn’t have surprised anyone.
Chase caught 11 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-34 loss to the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.
The yardage was just shy of the franchise record he set as a rookie in 2021 with a 266-yard performance against the Kansas City Chiefs, when he also caught 11 passes and scored three touchdowns on passes from Joe Burrow.
And as was the case in that Chiefs game at Paycor Stadium, Chase threw a few long touchdowns against the Ravens. One was a standard deep ball for a 70-yard touchdown, and the other was a “How did he do that?” 67 yards in which he caught a short pass and ran away from every player in the Baltimore defense chasing him.
Two 60 yard touchdowns tonight, nbd.@JoeyB x @Real10jayy__ #CINvsBAL on @NFLonPrime
pic.twitter.com/NUtbXOBLWx– Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) November 8, 2024
“He’s one of the best athletes on planet Earth,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said. “I mean, it’s as simple as it gets. It’s not just about the NFL, it’s about planet Earth. He is one of the best to do it.
Taylor was already 15 minutes into his standard next day’s press conference – which is usually about how long it should be – when the discussion turned to Chase and whether he’s even better this year.
The next seven or eight minutes devolved into Taylor uttering Chase in appreciation.
While everyone saw what Chase did for 60 minutes against the Ravens, Taylor said his true greatness goes far beyond that and into areas few fans get to see.
In an effort to free him from double teams and cloud concepts designed to rob him of his effectiveness, the Bengals placed Chase in every position imaginable, forcing him to learn countless responsibilities and nuances in a textbook regular setting. complex game.
“It’s amazing what he can handle,” Taylor said. ” Honestly. Some items would confuse me the first time I saw them on the map. And I’m trying to think while we’re in the walkthrough, where exactly we want him, and he just needs a quick reminder and he’s there, he’s got it. He understands everything.
“It’s amazing what he can digest,” Taylor added. “It’s hard to really express yourself without people sitting in a meeting and just looking at the plan throughout the week and understanding what we put Ja’Marr through. And he answers the bell every time and he has a tremendous football IQ and understanding of what our offense is and what we’re trying to do with him. And once again, he rises to the challenge every time.
Taylor said there has only been one instance in four years where Chase balked at something he asked her to do.
But he didn’t want to go into details.
“He once made some comments to me that he didn’t like,” Taylor said. “He says, ‘I don’t need that.’ We were just trying to give it an extra twist.
“Actually, two come to mind now: one, he said ‘no,’ and the other, Joe said, ‘let’s not do that,'” Taylor said. “I won’t go into detail about the plays. These are silly pieces. But he can handle anything. And just his attitude as a premier receiver in this league, just the way he communicates and carries himself, I don’t take that for granted because I know what that can look like.
When the Bengals announced their team captains in September, Chase was not among them.
But Taylor said he did everything a leader should do.
“Just his professionalism and the way he goes about his business, he doesn’t have a captain’s patch on his chest, but to me he’s a captain,” Taylor said. “His attitude and the way he helps these young guys and just his positivity in the locker room and the way he practices, he’s one of the most coached players in the league. For me, he’s a captain. Whether he has a “C” on his chest or not, he shows all of these traits.
Chase sets ambitious goals for himself each season and writes them down on notes that he sticks to his mirror to look at each day.
He’s obviously aware of his stats, but he’s not consumed by them.
He is also well aware of his contract and the lack of an extension he was hoping to sign this offseason.
But the impasse that caused him to sit out most of the offseason and training camp hasn’t impacted his approach since the start of the games.
His 10 touchdowns lead the league, as do his 981 receiving yards and 66 receptions, although he has the advantage of playing one more game than some players and two more than those who have already had their leave -pass.
But he’s on pace for 112 catches, 1,668 yards and 17 touchdowns.
“He wants football, but he wants to help us win,” Taylor said. “He really wants us to win games. And he knows, obviously, that touching the ball is going to go a long way in helping us get there. But there were times when he didn’t get as many touches and we won the game and he’s still so happy.
“And so I’m just proud of the way he’s approached the season.”
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