Bengals Draft: Ja’Marr Chase was a slam dunk first-round pick

Last year’s Cincinnati Bengals draft saw the team selecting Ja’Marr Chase with the fifth overall pick and it was met with a lot of scrutinies. It wasn’t anything against Chase but more of a knock against the team for ignoring the glaring needs on the offensive line.

Well, jokes on all of those people, as Chase not only put up record-breaking numbers but played a major role in getting this young team to the Super Bowl. Had Joe Burrow been given more time to throw on that final play, Chase very well could have been the recipient of the game-winning touchdown and likely would have won Super Bowl MVP.

While, yes, the Bengals’ offensive line woes came back to bite them on the biggest stage, no one would say the team regrets taking Chase over an o-lineman.

Randy Gurzi of NFL Spin Zone gave Chase an A+ for what he did during the course of his rookie year, and again, this is no surprise.

Bengals Draft: Cincinnati knocked it out of the park with Ja’Marr Chase selection

Chase had a rocky beginning in the Queen City, as he struggled with drops during the preseason. He immediately made everyone eat their words, though, and finished his rookie season with a whopping 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns. He earned the Offensive Rookie of the Year award for what he was able to do and that didn’t come as any surprise.

Looking back, it made perfect sense for Cincy to pass on an offensive lineman and take Chase considering his connection with Burrow. The two played together at LSU and we saw the magic return and the good thing is that it’s probably only going to grow stronger!

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With the offensive line likely set to massively improve, the Burrow-Chase connection is going to be even stronger. The Bengals will continue to be a scary team in 2022 and beyond because of what Chase brings to this offense.