Bengals reportedly made WR Ja’Marr Chase record contract offer

Unlike Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb or San Francisco 49ers wideout Brandon Aiyuk, Ja’Marr Chase has kept his contract negotiations with the Cincinnati Bengals largely out of the public eye.

As the two sides continue to negotiate into the season, James Rapien of Sports Illustrated reported on Wednesday that Cincinnati offered Chase a deal that would have tied him with Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson as the highest-paid WR in the NFL.

“The Bengals offered Chase a four-year, $140 million contract with $90 million guaranteed,” Rapien wrote. “That guaranteed money included a $30 million signing bonus. Those raw numbers worked for Chase's camp, sources tell Bengals On SI. The lone snag in the agreement had to do with when guarantees would kick in.”

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported last month that Chase, who has one more year left on his rookie deal and when he signs a new contract, was not only looking for a new contract, but he wanted to best the one given to Jefferson by one cent.

However, the 24-year-old wideout refuted the legitimacy of that report.

“If I want to beat Justin, I want to beat the [expletive] out of Justin,” Chase told reporters. “Not by a penny, bro.”

According to Rapien, Chase was OK with signing the four-year deal Cincy offered him, but he wanted his guaranteed money and injury guarantees to kick in earlier than what the Bengals were offering if he was going to take less guaranteed money than Jefferson got ($110M).

Chase played in the Bengals’ 16-10 Week 1 defeat to the New England Patriots as a show of good faith while the two sides work to hammer out a new contract. He led the Bengals with six receptions for 62 yards in the loss.