The Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Minnesota Vikings in overtime and rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase played a major role in the win.
Entering the season, Chase was facing scrutiny over some taken out-of-context quotes concerning the differences between NFL balls and college footballs, which didn’t help his case after a rocky preseason where he dropped five balls. He shut anyone up who doubted him though, going for over 100 yards and a touchdown in his first true glimpse of NFL action.
The performance helped Chase rise in the Rookie of the Year odds, going from +1400 before the season began to +900, per WynnBET. Peter Dewey of BetSided mentioned that while Mac Jones is now the frontrunner in the ROTY sweepstakes, Chase saw his stock rise tremendously along with fellow first-round receivers Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith.
Chase has the seventh-lowest odds to win Rookie of the Year, tying him with Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts, who also went in the first round, going just one pick ahead of Chase in the draft.
Ja’Marr Chase’s ROTY odds are soaring high after Bengals debut
It’s tough for a wide receiver to win Rookie of the Year due to the quarterback being the flashier position but none of the rookie quarterbacks looked great on Sunday. Trevor Lawrence was the previous frontrunner but three interceptions ailed his stat line.
Chase has the lowest odds out of all of the rookie receivers though, which isn’t surprising considering he was the first one picked. He might have had a rough preseason but Chase showed that he’s the same guy we saw at LSU in 2019 and his ROTY odds reflect that.