Stat of the Jay: How Have Past Triple Crown Winners Fared in Season-Opening Encores?

CINCINNATI – Ja’Marr Chase is ready for his encore.

The Cincinnati Bengals’ Pro Bowl wide receiver is coming off winning the receiving Triple Crown and inking a massive four-year, $161 million extension, and he said he can’t wait to get back out on the field Sunday at Huntington Bank Field against the Cleveland Browns.

Chase led the league with 127 catches, 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns last year to become the sixth player in the Super Bowl era to win the Triple Crown.

None of the previous five have been able to win the award twice, although Don Hutson won it five times prior to the Super Bowl era, in 1936, 1941, 1942, 1943 and 1944.

While no one has defended their crown since, let’s take a look at how the previous five have fared in their season openers coming off their sparkling seasons.

Cooper Kupp, 2021 (145-1,947-16)

After leading the Rams to a Super Bowl win against the Bengals in 2021, Kupp had good numbers in the 2022 opener against Buffalo, but in a losing cause as the team raised its banner.

He caught 13 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown, but the Rams lost 31-10.

Steve Smith 2005 (103-1,353-12)

After leading the Panthers to the NFC Championship game with his Triple Crown effort, Smith was inactive the first two weeks of 2006 due to a hamstring injury and ingrown toenail.

He made his season debut in Week 3 and caught seven passes for 112 yards in a 26-24 victory against Tampa Bay.

Sterling Sharpe, 1992 (108-1,461-13)

Like Chase, Sharpe’s Triple Crown season didn’t result in a playoff berth.

When he and the Packers returned to action to start 1993, Sharpe had seven catches for 120 yards and a touchdown in a 36-6 throttling of the Rams.

Jerry Rice, 1991 (100-1,502-13)

Rice’s Triple Crown marked just one of the six times he led the league in receiving yards, but his stellar 1991 season did not result in a playoff berth despite a 10-6 record.

Coming off that disappointment, it was a pedestrian start for Rice in 1992, as he had just five catches for 56 yards in a 31-14 win against the Giants in Week 1.

Rice wouldn’t record his first 100-yard game of 1992 until Week 7. And it was one of only three games in which he broke 100.

Lance Alworth, 1966 (73-1,383-13)

Football looked a little different in the mid-1960s. Alworth’s Triple Crown season led the Chargers to a 7-5-1 record, which fell shy of the playoffs.

In his 1967 season opener, Alworth posted just three catches for 36 yards as the Chargers beat the Patriots 28-14.

So what will Chase do for his encore?

Historically, he hasn’t fared well against the Browns.

In seven games against Cleveland, Chase has one 100-yard performance. That was Week 14 of 2022 when he caught 10 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown.

The Browns have held him to 55 or fewer yards in five of the seven games, although Chase scored a touchdown in each of last year’s games, both of which the Bengals won.