The greatest never stop trying to improve. That’s what Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase strives to be following an impressive first two seasons. In 29 games played (he missed four last season due to injury and one due to the game being cancelled), he recorded 168 receptions for 2,501 yards and 22 touchdowns, making the Pro Bowl in both seasons, and the second-team All-Pro list as a rookie.
But while the former fifth overall draft pick has all the talent you could ask for in a wide receiver from a physical perspective, he knows there is more he can do to improve his game as he pursues “all the receiving records”. And to do so, he knows he has to expand his thinking.
“I’m trying to be creative on routes because you already have the timing”, he said, via Geoff Hobson for the team’s website. “That’s what I’m trying to do now. Be a lot more creative in my routes. Now that I know the timing and how long I need to take”.
After playing just two collegiate seasons and sitting out his junior year to be eligible for the draft, one can fairly deduce that he came into the NFL somewhat raw, with some areas of his game that needed some fine-tuning at the next level.
The fact that he landed on the team with his college quarterback, Joe Burrow, helped to cut down the learning curve, but now that the duo is in its groove, they understand that they must keep evolving to take their game to the next level.
Much of Chase’s success in the first two NFL seasons stems from his combination of size and speed and his built-in rapport with Burrow. If he can become a polished route-runner on top of that and actually beat defensive backs with his mind and his craft, he’ll put himself on a Hall of Fame trajectory.
Of course, the Bengals have other mouths to feed, as well, including fellow wide receivers Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Many regard the trio as the best receiving corps in the NFL, so trying to keep all three of them happy and engaged will impinge upon the ability for any one of them to put up astonishing numbers.
If it’s any of the three who does, though, of course the most likely candidate would be Chase. To date, he is averaging roughly six receptions per game for 86 receiving yards and 0.76 touchdowns. His career catch rate is over 64 percent, as well, which is notable given that his average depth of target is over 10 yards down the field. Cutting down on his drops would help him out, as well.
