Ja'Marr Chase won't shy away from Bengals expectations, praises Joe Burrow
Ja’Marr Chase, and likely the rest of the Cincinnati Bengals, know there are Super Bowl expectations this season.
Just two years removed from the big game, a loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Chase, Joe Burrow and the squad are still near the top of the AFC. Heck, they were one win away from returning to the Super Bowl.
It’s nothing Chase hasn’t heard before, coming from a title-winning LSU team in college, and said the Bengals are ready.
“I mean we never turn it down, that’s like running away from it,” Chase said on Sirius XM NFL Radio. “Of course we embrace it. You know I’m saying … All this hoo-rah-rah stuff, that’s how it is, preseason, scrimmages going on. But you know, when it’s really time to count, we know what time it is.”
Chase also touched on Burrow throwing during pregame warmups before the first preseason game.
“I didn’t even know that was happening until I (saw) it on social media,” Chase said. “I felt like everyone in the locker room probably said the same thing. So like I said before all this happened and before we even got this far, I said he’s hard headed. I already know this is going to happen and he just wants to do stuff to make sure he’s good.
“But I know how he is. He’s a person that’s gonna push himself to be the best you know? I’m saying he’s not gonna let his teammates down. That’s one thing about Joe.”
Chase recorded 1,046 receiving yards last season despite playing in just 12 games. The former LSU standout suffered a hairline fracture in his hip during the Bengals’ Week 6 win over the Saints. Chase also recorded nine touchdowns, making him one of just eight receivers to rank in the top 20 in league touchdowns.
“More of the same,” head coach Zac Taylor said of the expectations of Chase individually this year. “Ja’Marr, and really our receiving group as a whole, the consistency they bring every day, they continue to push themselves. Troy Walters really does a great job pushing them as well as the receivers coach. It’s a really special group that just keeps coming to work every single day and trying to get better.”
Chase, Burrow and their fellow Bengals will kick off the regular season when they take on the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 10.