CINCINNATI — Bengals fans and Ja'Marr Chase fantasy owners can breathe a sigh of relief: Cincinnati has finally signed its star receiver to a massive contract extension.
NFL Insider Jordan Schultz first reported on X that the Bengals signed Chase to a 4-year, $161 million contract extension.
The deal makes Chase the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL, topping the four-year, $160 million extension pass rusher Myles Garrett signed with the Browns in early March.
Cincinnati's deal with WR1 has been a long time coming. Chase sat out of practice for weeks ahead of the 2024 season amid contract negotiations before halting them altogether until after the season ended. Throughout the preseason and 2024 season, his teammates had been outspoken in their support of Chase.
In February, Joe Burrow said he'd be willing to restructure his own mega-contract to retain the team's top talent. Burrow and Chase have played together every year since 2018 with one exception (Burrow's rookie season, in which Chase opted out of college ball to prepare for the NFL). Both had made it clear several times that they had no desire to change that.
At the NFL scouting combine in February, Duke Tobin, the Bengals' director of player personnel, said the team was committed to making Chase the highest paid non-quarterback. Bengals coach Zac Taylor had also reiterated Tobin's statement, saying, "It's good to have great players that want to be rewarded."
Selected by the Bengals in the first round of the 2021 draft, Chase was named Offensive Rookie of the Year after finishing his first NFL season with 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns. Despite dealing with an injury in 2022, he once again finished with more than 1,000 yards in just 12 games. The three-time Pro Bowler then followed that up with 100 receptions for 1,216 yards in the 2023 season.
During the 2024 season, Chase led the league in receptions (127), yards receiving (1,708) and touchdown catches (17), becoming just the sixth wide receiver in the Super Bowl era to achieve the receiving triple crown.
Chase has multiple NFL and franchise records, including becoming the youngest player in league history with multiple 100-yard receiving games in a single postseason.
