Cincinnati Bengals receivers Tee Higgins (left) and Ja’marr Chase take the stage during a press conference to announce the signing of new contracts for the pair at Paycor Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Chase becomes the new highest-paid non-quarterback player in the NFL. Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NFL Evaluators Rank Bengals Wide Receivers Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins Among NFL's Best Entering 2025 Season

Originally posted on Cincinnati Bengals on SI
By Russell Heltman | Last updated Jul 16, 2025 9:24 AM ET

Voices from all around the NFL have spoken and declared Bengals star Ja'Marr Chase as the league's best wide receiver.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler dropped the top WRs as voted on by NFL execs, scouts, and coaches, with Chase at the top and Tee Higgins as an honorable mention.

Chase just led the NFL in receiving yards, touchdowns, and catches last season.

"Honestly, it comes down to Chase is a b--- to cover," a high-ranking NFL personnel executive said to Fowler. "We are super aware of him and have played him a bunch and been torched by him a bunch."

The ESPN insider noted Chase's elite after-the-catch ability.

"Not many NFL players scare defensive coaches more than Chase, whose 787 yards after the catch were 190 more than the next closest receiver (Buffalo's Khalil Shakir)," Fowler wrote. "But the Bengals feel he's still refining his game, with improvements in defensive scheme recognition, attack plans based on coverages, and creative route running with different speeds or stems."

Higgins got some nice comments after porting a career-high 10 touchdowns last season.

"I was very curious to see what he would have done had he hit free agency and been a No. 1 on a team," A scouting director told Fowler. "I think he would be a 100-catch guy somewhere else. He's really good. Only thing he doesn't have is top-end speed."

Cincinnati has two of the best weapons in the sport and joined the Rams as the only teams with multiple players to at least earn honorable mention status in this exercise.