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The Cincinnati Bengals head into the 2026 season after a disappointing 6-11 finish in 2025 left them out of the playoffs for a third straight year. Cincinnati finished third in the AFC North, ranked as one of the worst defensive teams in the NFL and never recovered from another injury-hit season at quarterback, with Joe Burrow limited to eight games.
Even in a season where the Bengals again failed to deliver as a team, there were a few bright spots on the roster, wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase being one of them.

Chase had another standout year and was one of the league’s most productive wide receivers. He finished the 2025 season with 125 catches for 1,412 yards and eight touchdowns in 16 games. The 26-year-old has also cleared 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first five NFL seasons.
On Thursday, Chase was rewarded for his effort, with CBS Sports ranking him No. 4 on Pete Prisco’s 2026 Top 100 NFL Players list.
Chase was the highest ranked Bengal on the list, with Burrow slotting in at No. 5.
The former first round pick ranked third in receptions and fourth in receiving yards in 2025, while earning his second first-team All-Pro honors and his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl selection.

Chase also set a Bengals single-game franchise record with 16 catches against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 7, a game in which he posted 161 receiving yards and a touchdown and was later named AFC Offensive Player of the Week.
By the end of the season, Chase had also become the first wide receiver in NFL history to record at least 80 catches, 1,000 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in each of his first five NFL seasons, another marker of how productive he has been since entering the league.
Prior to last season, Chase produced one of the best seasons by a receiver in franchise history, leading the NFL in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns to win the receiving Triple Crown. He caught 127 passes for 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns, setting Cincinnati Bengals single-season records for receptions and receiving yards while tying the franchise touchdown record. He became the sixth player of the Super Bowl era to win the receiving Triple Crown and, through his first four seasons, ranked fourth in NFL history in catches, third in receiving yards and third in touchdown receptions.
Chase’s production is a major reason the Bengals are still viewed as a dangerous team entering 2026 despite the disappointment of last season. A healthy Burrow-Chase pairing remains one of the NFL’s most difficult combinations to defend, and Cincinnati believes its offseason defensive overhaul can finally support an offense that has too often had to carry the team.

Chase will again be central to everything the Bengals want to do, both because of his ability to take over games and because he remains Burrow’s most trusted target in the biggest moments.
Cincinnati opens the 2026 regular season at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 13 at Paycor Stadium. If the Bengals are going to be championship contenders next season, Chase will be one of the main reasons why.
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