Cincinnati Bengals fans might be able to rest a little easier tonight after Thursday's press conference from Ja'Marr Chase, where he offered some reassurance on Joe Burrow's future.
Chase and Burrow have been tight since they won a national title together at LSU. The former followed the latter into the NFL a season later, and they ran to the Super Bowl together when Chase was a rookie.
The results haven't been quite the same the last few seasons. Burrow has suffered two major injuries, and Chase's Triple Crown receiving season last year wasn't enough to make the playoffs even when Joe Brrr was healthy.
So as understandable as it was that Burrow publicly questioned how much fun he was having the day prior to much drama, Chase did his best to calm the waters.
Ja'Marr Chase has Joe Burrow's back in fiery defense of Bengals QB
Any group of local NFL reporters can wear on the players, let's face it. With all the losing that's happened in Cincinnati despite the presence of an elite QB and arguably the best receiver on the planet, of course there will be pointed questions in tough moments.
Chase came out firing with just enough restraint so as not to spark a super heated back-and-forth exchange, or sour relations with the beat writers, but he definitely got his point across. Just watch.
“He smiles every day. The narrative that y’all are trying to pin on him right now, I don’t see it.”
— SleeperBengals (@SleeperBengals) December 11, 2025
“He loves work. He loves the guys in the locker room, so he’s pretty positive to me.”
- Ja’Marr Chase on Joe Burrow pic.twitter.com/4idD116lAg
"He doesn't look like he's bummed to be here... the man loves the game, from what I see, he seems the same every day. No negativity from him." Ja'Marr Chase on Joe Burrow
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) December 11, 2025
“The narrative that y’all are trying to paint on him right now, I don’t see it.”
— Caleb Noe (@CalebNoeTV) December 11, 2025
2 minutes with Ja’Marr Chase, regarding Joe Burrow & his press conference yesterday⬇️
Some quotes from Ja’Marr:
“I thought this was an AI. Did this really happen? That’s real?”
“He don’t look… pic.twitter.com/GrwrCpK12o
Love to see Chase having Burrow's back like that. Sometimes I wonder about some of the things Chase says about his longtime teammate, about how quiet Burrow often is, how they don't say many actual words to each other, but that there's a mutual understanding.
Like I hope there's a mutual understanding and that Joe isn't drifting into his own world, wondering if the grass is greener with another NFL team. Obviously, his one-of-one chemistry with Chase can't be replaced, but there's no denying the Bengals haven't done enough to support Burrow overall throughout his tenure.
Who Dey Heads should cling to Chase's testimony as a strong indicator that Burrow isn't going anywhere despite his expression of discontent.
Granted, I thought the defense couldn't get worse from last season. It somehow did. Surely it can't happen two years in a row, right? Also consider that the offensive line is playing better than it has at any time in Burrow's career, and the running game looks the best it has in years.
Everything feels like it's crumbling because Cincinnati is 4-9 and staring down four remaining games with little to no playoff relevance. The truth is, the Bengals aren't far away, though it's worth acknowledging, Burrow and Chase are the primary reasons why that is.
So what's the next move? What's the spark to get Burrow more bought in on his Bengals future? We'll all find out together in the coming months.
For now, let us fans just enjoy the Burrow-to-Chase connection while we still know we have it.