Last week officially ended the questions about whether Ja’Marr Chase would be willing to sit out during Cincinnati Bengals games while angling for a contract extension. The three-time Pro Bowl receiver had been skipping practice during training camp, so the question about whether he’d be willing to do the same during regular season games appeared valid.
Chances are, the Bengals won’t be signing their superstar receiver to a contract extension in-season either. This means, if an extension comes, it won’t get done until the offseason kicks off. But now a new report suggests the Bengals may not have been honest with their 24-year-old pass-catcher during contract negotiations.
Sources suggest Cincinnati Bengals misled Ja’Marr Chase
A new ESPN report from Adam Schefter confirms previous rumors that the Cincinnati Bengals’ front office lied to Ja’Marr Chase about his contract extension. According to Schefter, Chase has zero plans to discuss a long-term extension in-season. In fact, Chase feels misled due to how the Bengals approached the extension negotiations.
“According to sources, the star wide receiver believes the Bengals misled him when they told him at the end of last season, and again during the offseason, he would get an extension that ultimately did not happen.”
Adam Schefter on Ja’Marr Chase
But Chase isn’t going into the season without a backup plan. He reportedly took out a $50 million insurance policy on himself, safeguarding him in the case of injury. Considering the Bengals haven’t done an in-season contract extension since 2015 with Andrew Whitworth, Chase is probably taking the right stance on waiting until the offseason, choosing to focus on his year ahead instead.
Once he does sign, Chase is expected to become the NFL’s highest-paid receiver of all time. If so, he’ll surpass his former LSU teammate and friend Justin Jefferson, who’s on a four-year, $140 million contract. For now, Chase will have a cap hit of $9.8 million in 2024 and $21.8M in 2025.
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