According to Ben Baby of ESPN, Cincinnati Bengals president Mike Brown revealed that it is unlikely Chase will receive a contract extension before the beginning of the 2024 season. He explained that this was not the opportune time to properly negotiate said contract extension with Chase.

“It’s not so likely that this is the good time to negotiate,” Brown said. “The offseason is a better time for that and we’re going to try to keep focused on the football part. I’m not going to rule anything out, but I will tell you that the die has probably been cast.”

-Mike Brown

Ja’Marr Chase’s Contract Situation

So, what does Chase’s contract currently look like? Well, he is still on his rookie deal. This year, he is earning a base salary of just over $1 million.

Chase is in the final year of his 4-year rookie contract. However, the Bengals do have a club option in 2025 worth nearly $22 million if they cannot get a long-term deal with Chase by next offseason. On top of this, the Bengals could even use the franchise tag on Chase in 2026.

If a deal does not get done soon, Cincinnati would arguably be getting Chase’s services at a discount. That is because wide receivers such as Justin Jefferson are getting paid $35 million annually.

Looking Back at Ja’Marr Chase’s Career

Chase has certainly had a very good career with the Bengals. He even helped lead the Bengals to a Super Bowl LVI appearance. Unfortunately, they went on to lose that Super Bowl to the Los Angeles Rams.

Last season, Chase had 1,216 receiving yards and seven touchdown receptions. In his first three seasons, Chase has 3,717 receiving yards and 29 touchdown receptions. Now, we will have to see if Chase can keep this pace up in 2024. Brown certainly believes Chase is a vital aspect of the Bengals’ success:

“He’s a key player next to Joe [Burrow],” Brown said. “He’s our next one. He knows that. We know it. This may take a while. We are going to bend over backwards to get it done. I can’t tell you when.”

-Mike Brown