Running back Chase Brown has been a real revelation for the Cincinnati Bengals this season. Brown played sparingly as a rookie last year and he entered the current campaign second on the depth chart. But, his opportunities have increased over the course of the campaign, and he has made the most of them.
Through 14 games of action, Brown has 1,150 scrimmage yards and 11 total touchdowns. He's had over 100 yards from scrimmage in four consecutive games, and he's morphed into an all-purpose, three-down back for the Bengals in the process. He's also solidified himself as Cincinnati's back of the future, at least according to star quarterback Joe Burrow.
Joe Burrow envisions a long, bright future for Chase Brown in Cincinnati
After Cincinnati's 37-27 win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 15, Burrow had some high praise for Brown and emphasized how he expects the Bengals to keep the young back around for the foreseeable future.
"He's been unbelievable, he really has," Burrow said of Brown. "It's exciting to see him come along like that. He's going to play here for a long time, he's going to be a great player for us for a long time. That last drive the O-line came off on the ball, we ran it really well on that drive. He ran it really hard, that was a great way to finish it off."
Heading into the season, many wondered if Brown was the long-term answer in the backfield for the Bengals, especially after the departure of Pro Bowler Joe Mixon. But, Brown has done an admirable job of stepping into Mixon's shoes, and he's even outperformed Mixon in recent weeks.
Since Week 11:
— Ben Baby (@Ben_Baby) December 16, 2024
Chase Brown -- 7th in rushing EPA among RBs
Joe Mixon -- 72nd in rushing EPA
(via ESPN Research)
Chase Brown is on pace for a top 20 Bengals season in terms of Touchdowns and Yards From Scrimmage.
— Goodberry (@JoeGoodberry) December 16, 2024
Top 15 is possible 😳 pic.twitter.com/3Sy8dczm1i
Brown has shown that he's more than capable of shouldering an RB1 workload, which was a question prior to this season. The Ontario product still has two years remaining on his rookie contract, so it seems safe to assume that he'll be in a Bengals uniform through the life of that contract, at the very least.
The Bengals will have several areas of improvement regarding the roster over the offseason, but thanks to the emergence of Brown, running back isn't one of them.