Ja’Marr Chase was limited in his return to Cincinnati practice on Wednesday and he might be limited in Sunday’s opener against New England on Sunday. But the fact that Cincinnati seemingly plans to dress him in their Week 1 game (1 p.m. ET, CBS) is more of a threat than how many catches he makes.
That’s according to ESPN’s Jason McCourty on Wednesday’s NFL Live, who noted that despite losing offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, now the head coach in Tennessee, the majority of Zac Taylor’s playbook is still available.
“Their biggest asset is, if Ja’Marr Chase is on the football field, for the New England Patriots it changes your thought process of how you’re attacking from a defensive standpoint, the attention he warrants when he’s out there,” McCourty said. “Because if I’m on defense, I have no idea whether they have their entire playbook available. I’m thinking, ‘If Ja’Marr Chase is out there, I’ve got to prepare for war in a time of peace. We’ve got to set a double-team, we’ve got to do whatever we can to make sure Ja’Marr Chase doesn’t beat us.’”
Former NFL wide receiver Andrew Hawkins agreed with McCourty, a 13-year NFL cornerback who won a Super Bowl with New England.
“I think the offense is going to be relatively the same as in previous years,” Hawkins said, noting Joe Burrow and Chase already have great chemistry. “Obviously, if the Bengals were motivated to get him in the lineup, they absolutely could, because the threat of Ja’Marr Chase is what a team has to prepare for.”
Burrow told ESPN.com beat writer Ben Baby that he got in additional work with Chase prior to training camp, and the receiver will be ready to go. Insider Adam Schefter said the contract stalemate between Chase and the team continues, and sees Chase practicing as a good-faith gesture.