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Henry McKenna
NFL Reporter
On so many levels, Ja’Marr Chase isn’t getting the respect he deserves.
Let’s start with his contract, which is where his focus is fixed. Chase is in the final year of his rookie contract, and while there is absolutely zero question over whether he’s one of the league’s best receivers, the Cincinnati Bengals have failed to deliver an extension that compensates him properly.
And that’s where the second level of disrespect comes in: It feels like we haven’t been talking enough about Chase. Not until Wednesday when things hit that-escalated-quickly level of dysfunction. Bengals coach Zac Taylor told reporters Chase would be on the practice field to participate. He wasn’t. He showed up late — and in shorts and a T-shirt.
“I probably put my foot in my mouth speaking too quickly,” Taylor said after practice.
Oops.
And also — yikes.
We’ve spent the summer talking about San Francisco 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk, in part because he’s such a key cog in the Brock Purdy-led offense. Aiyuk also made headlines when he demanded a trade. (That trade demand led to a dramatic saga of will-he, won’t-he. Though the 49ers and Steelers have — or had? — a deal in place, Aiyuk remains in San Francisco.) It was pretty simple: Aiyuk was more interesting than Chase, even if he isn’t the better player.
But maybe now that real football is on the horizon, it’s time to shift our focus to a situation that might just be spiraling out of control.
Chase is as important to Joe Burrow’s comeback efforts as anyone. (Burrow is returning from a season-ending wrist injury in 2023.) And that means Chase is as important to the Bengals’ Super Bowl ambitions as anyone not named Burrrow.
“[Chase] is a key player,” owner Mike Brown told reporters before training camp. “Next to Joe [Burrow], he is the next one. He knows it. We know it. This may take a while. We are going to bend over backwards to get it done.”
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Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/bengals-wr-jamarr-chases-contract-dispute-verge-going-nuclear
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Publish date : 2024-08-29 16:21:59
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