Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase is shutting down further contract discussions during the 2024 season after feeling that ownership misled him about their intentions to sign him to an extension this offseason, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
While he is committed to playing out this season, Chase does not believe the Bengals kept to their word. According to Schefter, the team told him during his exit meeting at the end of last season and again during the Combine that they would finish an extension. Now a week into the regular season, the two sides remain at a stalemate.
Unless something dramatic changes on the Bengals’ side, it appears likely to stay that way through the 2024 season. I imagine most people already assumed that, but it is notable that Chase is shutting the discussion down.
Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson did the same thing a couple years ago when he was in the position Ja’Marr Chase is in now. The only difference is at the time Jackson represented himself. He set the deadline for no in-season negotiations, and the Ravens are a team that historically does negotiate in-season.
The Bengals, however, historically are not. Schefter notes that they have only completed one in-season contract in the past 20 years, a one-year extension. While they have engaged with Chase throughout the season, they have failed to complete a satisfactory contract.
Schefter writes that Chase has taken out a $50 million insurance policy to protect himself against injury during the season. Such a tactic is not out of the ordinary for players without a long-term contract.
It is worth noting that Ja’Marr Chase is not actually in the final year of his deal. He is on the books for 2025 under his fifth-year option, which is worth close to $22 million. The three-time Pro Bowler through three seasons is earning under $5 million for this year.
Chase has watched a number of wide receivers reset the market for his position this offseason, many from his draft class. That includes two other players who were first-round picks, Jaylen Waddle and Devonta Smith. In other words, it is not uncommon for first-round receivers to sign extensions three years into their deals after having their fifth-year options picked up.
Bengals owner Mike Brown admitted back in July that an extension this season for Ja’Marr Chase was “not so likely”. That appears to be in conflict with what Chase actually thought about his prospects of a new deal in 2024.
During the season-opening loss to the Patriots, Chase caught all six targets for 62 yards. During his first three seasons, he caught 268 passes for 3,717 yards and 29 touchdowns. He has unquestionably been one of the game’s top players at his position since the Bengals drafted him fifth overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. He now seems to accept, however, that he will have to wait another year before he’s compensated like it. The Bengals were expected to make him the game’s highest-paid receiver in history. He will have a new crop of free agents to contend with for that distinction in 2025, however.
