According to Adam Schefter, the Bengals and WR Ja’Marr Chase are not expected to reach a long-term deal before the start of the season today.
Schefter adds it’s not clear if Chase is going to play today. He was limited in practice this week and listed as questionable on the injury report with an illness. The inactive list is due at 11:30 EST.
Chase told reporters on Friday today was the deadline for a contract and the two sides were close to a deal.
He also confirmed he was looking to eclipse Jefferson’s contract as the league’s highest-paid receiver, but isn’t demanding a contract that goes “a lot higher” than the Vikings’ wideout.
“I’m not really looking to go a lot higher. That’s not really me trying to beat him out, me trying to go crazy. It’s just what’s right,” Chase said, via Mike Garafolo.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reported this week there are people within the Bengals who were “encouraged and hopeful as of late last week” about negotiations with Chase.
Although, ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote he is “legitimately concerned” that Chase will miss games if a contract isn’t finalized over the next couple of days.
Chase, 24, was a two-year starter at LSU and a unanimous All-American during his sophomore season. He opted out of the 2020 college football season due to the pandemic. The Bengals took Chase with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Chase is in the fourth year of a four-year, $30,819,642 contract with the Bengals that included a $19,774,285 signing bonus. The Bengals picked up a fifth-year option on him worth $21.816 million fully guaranteed for the 2025 season.
In 2023, Chase appeared in 16 games for the Bengals and caught 100 passes on 145 targets for 1,216 yards and seven touchdowns.
We’ll have more on Chase as the news is available.
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