Ja’Marr Chase Is A Frontrunner For OPOY

Chase is part of a rare league club: just thirteen other NFL wide receivers dating back to 1932 have won the triple crown. In the modern era, it’s only been accomplished three times since 2005, a reminder of how absurdly difficult it is to dominate all three receiving categories at once.

Chase (2024), Steve Smith (2005), and Sterling Sharpe (1992) are the only wide receivers in NFL history to accomplish the triple crown and not win the OPOY in the same season.

The OPOY has turned into a skill-position award. The last decade’s worth of ballots stamps that case. A running back or receiver has won the award every year dating back to 2019, and three of the past five years have favored a receiver (Kupp ’21, Justin Jefferson ’22, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba ’25).

The only anomaly was Matt Ryan’s MVP season in 2017, when he orchestrated the best passer rating (117.1) in addition to the highest-scoring offense (33.8 PPG), leading the Falcons to Super Bowl LI. Patrick Mahomes in 2019 had a similar season when he threw 50 touchdowns in his first year starting for the Kansas City Chiefs and threw for a ridiculous 5,097 passing yards.

The Athletic recently polled 40 staff members on who they thought would win OPOY, and Chase ranked second with seven votes, behind Gibbs of the Detroit Lions.

Burrow’s availability dictates Ja’Marr Chase’s ceiling for Offensive Player of the Year. The issue isn’t talent; it’s time missed. Burrow has played more than 10 games just once in the last three seasons, a number that keeps looming over every projection of the Bengals’ future.

The 1,600-Yard Threshold

What makes Chase so dangerous is his run-after-the-catch ability. During his monster 2024 season, he led the NFL in YAC (yards after catch), recording 787 yards, and last season he was fourth with 640 yards after the catch.

According to Next Gen Stats, “since entering the NFL in 2021, Chase has amassed 629 yards after the catch on touchdown receptions, 246 more than the next closest player.”

Chase belongs in the tiny group of receivers whose impact directly decides how games end. He’s not just a beneficiary of the volume; he’s a catalyst. In Weeks 13 and 15 against the Baltimore Ravens, the ex-LSU star piled up 30 targets, 17 receptions, and 242 yards.

Since the NFL merger (1970), the wide receivers who have won the offensive player of the year award ( Rice twice, Kupp, Jefferson, Smith-Njigba, and Michael Thomas) have averaged 1,642 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns.

If Chase is anywhere near the 1,600-yard mark and the Bengals are playing competitive football after Thanksgiving, there’s a good chance 7-Eleven will have upwards of 200-plus targets and be in contention for OPOY.