It didn’t take long for Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase to prove that he belongs in the NFL.
The former LSU standout won Offensive Rookie of the Year honors after setting the record for most receiving yards in a season by a rookie at 1,455.
He edged the mark set by his former teammate Justin Jefferson who had 1,400 for the Minnesota Vikings in 2020.
Chase also caught 13 touchdowns and averaged 18 yards per reception during the regular season.
His stellar play continued in the postseason when he became the first rookie to have multiple 100-yard receiving games.
Chase’s 266 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs is also a rookie record.
The familiarity between him and quarterback Joe Burrow has helped the Bengals reach Super Bowl LVI.
Unfortunately, they fell short to the Los Angeles Rams who had Odell Beckham Jr. in that game until he tore his ACL early on.
However, All-Pro safety Tyrann Mathieu sees the parallels between the two stellar wideouts.
It's an @LSUFootball thing 🤝@obj | @Real10jayy__ | @Mathieu_Era pic.twitter.com/NRntrsjgDk
— NFL (@NFL) June 28, 2022
Like Chase, Beckham also suited up for the Tigers from 2011 to 2013.
The younger LSU star seems to be following the career path of his senior because he is already an All-Pro and also won Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
Both Chase and Beckham were also selected to the Pro Bowl in their rookie season and were part of the All-Rookie Team by the Pro Football Writers of America.
Hoping For A Healthy Career For Chase
However, the Bengals hope that Chase won’t have the same injury history as Beckham.
Those injuries limited Beckham to 319 yards and three touchdowns in 2020.
He also had 537 total yards for the Rams and the Cleveland Browns last season.
Chase is a huge part of the Bengals’ success and they can’t afford to have him sidelined.
Leave a Reply