NFL Rookie Spotlight - Ja'Marr Chase

The Cincinnati Bengals ushered in a new era of football last season with the addition of QB Joe Burrow. Now entering his second year, Burrow will be reunited with a former teammate from LSU-- WR Ja'Marr Chase-- in hopes of elevating this offense to a new level. The Bengals drafted Chase with the fifth overall pick in the 2021 draft. 

The rookie wideout certainly adds another dimension to the Bengals’ offense and suddenly this unit looks very potent with a rising QB, a solid RB, and a trio of talented pass-catchers. With multiple decent pass-catchers on this team all looking to make plays though, how will Chase fare?

Let’s break down the rookie’s college stats and fantasy outlook for 2021:

College Production

The rookie WR managed to play only two seasons at LSU as he opted out of his junior season in 2020. He also ended up having a very modest freshman season in 2018 where he managed 23 receptions for 313 yards and three scores in 10 games. So, what drove up the 21-year-old’s draft stock, then? Well, Ja'Marr Chase had an epic 2019 season with Joe Burrow which culminated in a National Championship win in January 2020. 

Chase finished with an incredible 84 receptions for 1,780 yards and 20 touchdowns in 14 games that season. He also averaged a stellar 21.2 yards per catch in that memorable campaign. The LSU player paced FBS WRs in receiving yards and touchdowns that year while ranking fourth in yards per catch. 

Chase displays excellent strength and is hard to bring down, shows great body control, has the ability to make great catches, and is a decent route runner. He also brings a competitive edge to the field and will not back down from making plays. The WR has drawn comparisons to Michael Crabtree.

2021 Fantasy Outlook

Joe Burrow will have a plethora of weapons to work with but rounding out the top-three pass-catchers on this team is Tyler Boyd, Tee Higgins, and Ja’Marr Chase. Despite Chase and Burrow having established chemistry from their college years, it doesn’t mean the rookie will be the automatic WR1 on the team.

In fact, it’s more realistic that managers find out which Bengals receiver is the best fantasy option as the season progresses. For now, Boyd, Higgins, and Chase are the WR1, WR2, and WR3 on the team, but those labels are likely not solidly attached to a specific name. It’s safe to assume all three guys will get the majority of targets from Burrow, but how the distribution will work remains uncertain at the moment. 

Nevertheless, Chase’s competition for targets is formidable. Boyd had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2018 and 2019 before falling back down to Earth a bit in 2020 where he still amassed 79 receptions for 841 yards and four scores on 110 targets in 15 games.

Last year, then-rookie Tee Higgins had a fantastic first year in the NFL in which he paced the Bengals’ pass-catching unit in receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, yards per catch, and receiving yards per game. The big-bodied wideout accumulated 67 receptions for 908 yards and six scores on 108 targets in 16 games. He also averaged 13.6 yards per catch.

There’s no doubt all three of Cincy’s top-three receivers are quite talented. Given the fact that all three WRs, unfortunately, may bring down each other’s fantasy value, none should be considered an elite pass-catcher to scoop up in fantasy heading into draft season. In fact, Chase--along with Higgins and Boyd-- should all be considered in the WR3 tier in drafts. Then, as the season progresses, it may be possible one of these guys may emerge as a stronger fantasy option than the others depending on targets and production. 

Dynasty Outlook

It would be rare to find a dynasty league where Chase wasn't the top wideout selected in rookie drafts. Unlike last year with Henry Ruggs, Chase being selected as the first WR in the NFL Draft will coincide with his selection in dynasty drafts. The fact he has to compete with Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd for targets is outweighed by the link to Joe Burrow for the long-term, whereas the jury is still out on the Alabama tandems of Jalen Hurts to DeVonta Smith and Tua Tagovailoa to Jaylen Waddle.

There is a strong argument to make for Chase the top overall rookie in this class since receivers have a longer shelf life than running backs and, despite how athletically gifted Kyle Pitts may be, tight ends are rarely league-winning assets. Chase has more value in dynasty than redraft at the moment, but that could change quickly if the LSU connection is established quickly.

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