Ja'Marr

Chase

Chase hadn’t had a game with 100 yards receiving until two weeks ago. Since then, he’s had at least 10 receptions, at least 141 yards and a touchdown in back-to-back games. Ho-hum. Chase absolutely toasted Falcons cornerback AJ Terrell for a 47-yard touchdown in the first quarter on a play that looked eerily similar to a touchdown he had against Terrell when the two were in college. Chase is up to 647 yards and seven touchdowns on the season. He’s a WR1 heading into Week 10’s matchup against the Steelers.

Chase was heavily involved in a pass-heavy game script, seeing 16-of-48 Joe Burrow pass attempts. He was targeted downfield several times, catching a 30-yard touchdown but being the intended target on a pair of interceptions. It was Chase’s first 100-yard receiving day as he led the team in targets and receptions. The Bengals have a pass funnel to Chase and Tee Higgins, leading to extremely productive fantasy days in high scoring games. Chase is once again squarely in the fantasy WR1 ranks for Week 9 against the Falcons.

He will play and be on the overall WR1 line against the Titans. Zac Taylor spoke earlier today and said he had no concerns about Chase. Everyone has downplayed concerns about Chase’s ankle for the majority of the week. He will be a smash play against a Jeffrey Simmons-less Titans defense.

Chase quickly puts his fantasy managers’ worries to rest, returning to a full session Thursday after being limited Wednesday. The Bengals will be playing without two tight ends and their WR3 in Andre Iosivas, but their primary contributors remain one of the healthier units as we approach the half way point in the regular season. Chase can be started as a top tier WR1 against the Titans.

Rap isn’t breaking much news here. Chase didn’t practice on Wednesday, but the Bengals listed him as getting a rest day on top of the ankle issue. It was just a maintenance day for one of the league’s best wideouts. Chase remains in the WR1 overall mix for his Week 8 game against the Titans.

The rest aspect suggests Chase’s ankle injury can effectively be treated as a non-issue, but NFL teams have played games with the injury report at times this season, so we are cataloguing it here to be safe. Assuming Chase resumes practicing tomorrow, he can be started as an elite WR1, as usual, in Week 8 against the Titans.

Chase caught just two passes for 23 yards in the first half, but he popped up for a 30-yard gain in the fourth quarter on a drive that he capped with a two-yard touchdown to save the day for his fantasy managers. His seven targets tied Tee Higgins for the team-high this week, but Higgins had the far more productive day. He’s still in search of his first 100-yard performance of the year, but Chase has now found the end zone five times and has gone for 60-plus yards in four of six games this season. He’ll be on the WR1 radar next week against the Titans.

Chase returned from a concussion he suffered last week, seeing 10 targets in a productive fantasy day. He saw a goal-line fade target on the Bengals’ first drive and was later tackled at the one-yard line towards the end of the first half. Joe Burrow missed Chase for a 70-yard touchdown in the second half but Chase made a miraculous catch with his right arm for a 45-yard touchdown later in the half. He finishes with a successful fantasy day and is squarely in the WR1 ranks heading into the Bengals’ Week 6 bye.

Chase cleared the league’s concussion protocol over the weekend. With Tee Higgins (neck/groin) also expected to play, it’s business as usual for the Bengals this week. Higgins could be on a pitch count, while Chase won’t have any restrictions. Facing a pitiful Miami defense, Chase is in the running for WR1 overall this week.

He did fully practice today — it feels like this is trending in the right direction, but it’s hard to know without detailed reporting of where he is in the protocol how likely he is to sit. We’re sure there will be many more report on Chase over the next 24-36 hours. He enters the weekend a true question mark.