The Bengals wideout's Week 1 adjustment grab against Derek Stingley Jr. puts him back in front of every athletic-brand scout ahead of March negotiations.
Ja'Marr Chase dragged his toes on a 38-yard touchdown against Houston's Derek Stingley Jr. in the second quarter Saturday, adjusting mid-air to haul in Joe Burrow's back-shoulder throw and breaking a scoreless game. The catch required Chase to twist his torso, extend his arms fully, and plant both feet in the white stripe before momentum carried him out of bounds. Cincinnati won 38-20. The replay made it into Nike's social channels within 90 minutes of the final whistle.
Chase finished with seven receptions for 113 yards and two touchdowns on eight targets. The second score came on a slant route in the third quarter, again over Stingley, his LSU teammate from the Tigers' 2019 championship run. Chase now has six games of 100-plus yards in playoff and Wild Card appearances since entering the league in 2021, more than any receiver drafted in that class. His catch rate on contested targets this season sits at 58 percent, fourth among receivers with at least 50 such attempts, per Pro Football Focus.
The timing matters because Chase is entering the final year of his rookie deal with a $21.8M fifth-year option already exercised. Minnesota gave Justin Jefferson $140M over four years last June, with $110M guaranteed. A.J. Brown signed $96M over three years in Philadelphia the month before, $84M guaranteed. Chase's agents at CAA have delayed extension talks twice since December, each time citing unfinished business on the field. The Bengals' playoff exit came earlier than expected, but Chase's performance—eight catches for 145 yards in two postseason games—gives CAA a clean reel for March meetings. One executive at a rival NFC club said his team's analytics group ran comps on Chase versus Jefferson last week and concluded the market floor is now $32M annually.
Nike has Chase in its second-tier athlete roster, one level below signature-shoe players like Jefferson and Davante Adams. The company sent a film crew to Cincinnati three times this season, per two people familiar with the shoots, including one session in November focused on hand-eye drills. Jordan Brand, which shares Nike's athlete budget, has used Chase in regional spots but not yet in national playoff campaigns. Adidas extended an offer to Chase's reps in October, according to a person close to those discussions, structured around a potential signature cleat launch in 2026 if Chase hits certain yardage and Pro Bowl thresholds. The Saturday catch, shown on CBS in prime time and looped across every highlight package by Sunday morning, is the kind of tape that moves those calls from courtesy chats to term-sheet exchanges.
Chase's deal will also set the number Cincinnati uses to evaluate Tee Higgins, who is playing on the franchise tag at $21.8M and becomes unrestricted in March if the Bengals decline to tag him again. Higgins had five catches for 71 yards Saturday. The Bengals have $48M in projected cap space for 2025, but re-signing both receivers would require clearing at least $15M in additional room, likely through restructures on Burrow's $55M annual contract. One Western Conference GM said he expects Cincinnati to prioritize Chase, let Higgins test the market, and draft a receiver in Round 2 or 3. The Bengals have not used a first-round pick on a wideout since taking Chase ninth overall in 2021.
Watch for Chase's extension framework to surface in the two weeks following the Super Bowl, when most top-tier deals get finalized before the March 12 start of the new league year. Nike's spring campaign typically locks its athlete roster by mid-February, which compresses the window for any brand switch. Higgins' agent, David Mulugheta, represents several clients in similar franchise-tag situations and has historically waited until the market resets before engaging. If Chase signs before Higgins, that number becomes the baseline for every remaining receiver negotiation, including Dallas's CeeDee Lamb extension talks and Miami's decisions on Tyreek Hill's restructure.
The Bengals fly to Las Vegas for a divisional-round game next Saturday if results break their way Sunday. Chase has never played in a conference championship game. The endorsement market does not care.
The takeaway
Chase's playoff tape pushes his extension floor past **$32M annually**, compressing Cincinnati's cap math and accelerating Nike's spring roster decisions.
Editorial & Disclosure Notice: This article was written with artificial intelligence from public sources and is published without individual human review. Artificial intelligence and other digital tools are also used for research, analysis, editing, formatting, and production. Errors, omissions, outdated information, or inaccuracies may occur. References to companies, brands, products, services, organizations, or individuals are for informational and editorial purposes and do not imply endorsement, sponsorship, affiliation, partnership, or approval unless expressly stated. All trademarks and other intellectual property remain the property of their respective owners. Opinions, analysis, estimates, and commentary are informational only and should not be construed as financial, investment, legal, tax, medical, procurement, or other professional advice. Information may be corrected, clarified, or updated after publication. Corrections or removal requests: jenny@pops4.com.
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