The Cincinnati Bengals are going to have an explosive offense in 2022 but who will lead the charge when it comes to receiving yards?
Last year, the Cincinnati Bengals had three starting wide receivers who could have been a WR1 for most teams in the league. They got a lot of heat for spending the fifth overall pick on Ja’Marr Chase when they already had Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd at the position and desperately needed help on the offensive line.
Well, guess what?
Chase went on to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, smashing records along the way. He clearly proved that he was the right pick and led the team in receiving yards during his rookie year with 1,455.
A distant second in receiving yards was Higgins, who went over the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career, finishing with 1,091 yards through 14 games. In third place was Boyd, who didn’t amass 1,000 yards but came close with 828 yards of his own.
The difference between third and fourth place was massive, as C.J. Uzomah, who’s no longer with the team, had 493 yards. He obviously won’t be a factor in the offense this year but perhaps the newly-added tight end Hayden Hurst could be?
Who will lead the Cincinnati Bengals in receiving yards in 2022?
The easiest answer here is Chase. He’s the WR1 and Joe Burrow is clearly comfortable throwing his way even when he’s heavily covered. Chase led the team in receiving yards by quite a wide margin and while teams are more familiar with what he can do this year, he’s going to get his and be the same explosive playmaker he was in 2021.
I could certainly hear a case for Higgins or Boyd leading the team in receiving yards because, as mentioned above, they could be a WR1 for most teams. Both guys are going to be vying for an extension next offseason so balling out this year can only help them.
I’ll go with Ja’Marr Chase to lead the Cincinnati Bengals in receiving yards this year. Who ya got, Bengals fans?