Star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase was unable to secure a long-term contract extension with the Cincinnati Bengals during the offseason.
With talks likely on hold for the remainder of the season — a stance that long has been the case in the history of the Bengals — Chase reportedly opted for a different route. He elected to take out a $50 million insurance policy on himself for this season as a means to protect himself from injury and any potential lost earnings, ESPN reported Sunday.
The contract stalemate kept Chase on the sidelines for training camp and the preseason. He had six catches for 62 yards in Cincinnati’s 16-10 setback to the New England Patriots last Sunday.
Chase, 24, is seeking a contract extension along the lines of his former LSU teammate Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings. Jefferson reset the market with a four-year, $140 million contract ($35 million per season) that eclipsed the $32 million per year Philadelphia Eagles wideout A.J. Brown receives.
Amon-Ra St. Brown signed a four-year deal worth $30.002 million per year with the Detroit Lions, and the Dallas Cowboys finally paid CeeDee Lamb’s asking price — four years, $136 million with $100 million guaranteed — last month to bring his offseason holdout to a close.
Chase caught 100 passes for 1,216 yards and seven touchdowns last season. He’s scheduled to play on the final year of his four-year rookie contract — at a base salary of $1.055 million — and has a fifth-year team option worth $21.8 million for 2025.
The No. 5 pick in the 2021 draft, Chase has 274 catches for 3,779 yards and 29 touchdowns in 46 games with Cincinnati. He has posted three 1,000-yard seasons.
–Field Level Media