Bengals' Ja'Marr Chase Named NFL's Best by Rival Head Coach
Newsweek · C · trust 46/100
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. Ja'Marr Chase is coming off yet another strong season, even if the Cincinnati Bengals ' record didn't show it.
Chase led the NFL with a career-high 185 targets and hauled in 125 catches for 1,412 yards, fourth-most in the league, earning his second straight first-team All-Pro nod. And that was with him catching passes from three different quarterbacks as Joe Burrow missed nine games due to a serious turf toe injury.
Unfortunately, the Bengals went 1-8 without Burrow and finished 6-11 on the year. It was yet another disappointing season in Cincinnati, and the team's third straight year missing the playoffs. Reminder that this is the same team that went to the Super Bowl in 2021.
But even with Chase entering his sixth season at 26 years old, it's clear he's still the best wide receiver in the NFL, and ESPN's Jeremy Fowler made that clear on Wednesday.
Fowler released his annual WR rankings after surveying executives, coaches, and scouts from around the league, and Chase again took the top spot and "dominated the voting," as Fowler put it, with around 70% of the first-place votes.
One unnamed NFL head coach even went as far as to say, "He's the best I've gone against ... He can break it for 80 (yards) at any time."
"He showed over the past two years or so that he can play inside and outside," another veteran coach said. "(The Bengals) moved him around more, and he's gotten better as the ultimate chess piece."
For as good as Chase is, and the Bengals offense as a whole, for that matter, their defense was historically bad last season, ranking dead last in most statistical categories. Burrow himself urged the front office to act fast after the season, saying " something's got to change ."
And for the most part, they did. Cincinnati traded for All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence and signed Boye Mafe, Bryan Cook, Jonathan Allen, and Kyle Dugger in free agency. They also used their first two picks in the 2026 NFL Draft on defenders, selecting Texas A&M's star pass rusher Cashius Howell 41st overall and Washington corner Tacario Davis 72nd overall.
The defense should be much better in 2026, and with Chase still the best receiver in the league, the sky's the limit for this team.
Chase has proven he can do everything well, at every level of the field, regardless of who's throwing him the ball or how banged up the roster is around him. And his bond with Burrow is central to all of it.
At 29 and 26, Burrow and Chase are both locked into long-term deals and have already tasted individual and team success together in Cincinnati. Health remains the wildcard, but if both stay on the field, this Bengals team has real reason for optimism in 2026.
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