The Cincinnati Bengals have long had a reputation for letting contract talks play out until the 11th hour, or having players play on their franchise tag and then walking. However many believed that securing a long term deal with star wide receiver Ja”Marr Chase wouldn’t be an issue, including Chase himself.
However as Week 2 of the NFL season is about to kick off, the former LSU wideout remains without an extension, and has begun to express his frustrations publicly.
According to sources, Chase believes that the Bengals “misled” him by telling him they were committed to getting a deal done this offseason, but then didn’t put in the work to make it a reality. As a result, the 24 year old’s camp has informed the front office that they aren’t willing to pick up negotiations until after the conclusion of the 2024 NFL campaign.
As a result, the former first rounder has taken out a $50M insurance policy on himself to safeguard against injury or lost earnings this season. Chase and his camp have reportedly told Cincinnati that the time to complete a contract extension was during the offseason, and now their sole focus is on the 2024 NFL campaign.
Other notable players from the 2021 draft class, including Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jaylen Waddle, and DeVonta Smith all landed lucrative long term deals this summer. However the notoriously frugal Bengals apparently weren’t willing to meet the demand of their number 1 wide receiver.
While Chase and his representatives weighed the pros and cons of sitting out the first two weeks of the season, cooler heads ultimately prevailed. Now, the Bengals, and their suddenly thin wide receiver room, will take on the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday in a 4:25pm ET showdown.
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