When the Cincinnati Bengals drafted Ja’Marr Chase in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, there were plenty of folks who questioned if it was the right move.
Cincinnati’s offensive line obviously needed to be upgraded after a 2020 season that saw quarterback Joe Burrow’s season end prematurely due to a torn ACL.
But the allure of pairing Joe Burrow with Chase, his former teammate at LSU, was too attractive for the Bengals to pass up.
After watching Chase have the best season by a wide receiver in Bengals franchise history as a rookie, it’s clear that Cincinnati made the right move.
Burrow and Chase were downright dominant in 2019 at LSU.
Chase caught 84 passes for 1,780 yards and 20 touchdowns during a magical 2019 season in Baton Rouge that ended with a 15-0 record and a win in the national championship game against Clemson.
The duo didn’t play together in 2020, as Chase wasn’t eligible for the NFL draft just yet.
But they didn’t show any rust when they reconnected in the NFL — Chase caught 5 passes for 101 yards and a touchdown in his first career NFL game last season.
The touchdown in that game — the first of Chase’s career — has a wild backstory that makes Burrow look like even more of a legend.
Here are the dots for Ja’Marr Chase’s first career TD. (via NFl Next Gen) pic.twitter.com/FGAEscUCz3
— Ben Baby (@Ben_Baby) September 12, 2021
According to Chase, his first NFL touchdown happened because a “go route” was called and it was the first time since their days at LSU that Chase and Burrow had that route called in a game.
Chase told The Ringer recently that he knew immediately that Burrow was going to throw him the ball no matter what — just to see if they still had the same level of chemistry together that they had at LSU.
Most quarterbacks would probably try that in practice or a preseason game.
But not Burrow. He’s confident enough in himself and his teammates to see if he and Chase “still have it” in the middle of a regular season game.
And it paid off in a big way. Burrow threw a perfect pass and Chase came down with the reception as he scampered into the end zone, leaving no doubt that the chemistry between the duo never left.
I’m not sure what else Burrow can do to amaze us at this point, but I’m sure he’ll find a way.
