Zac Taylor reflects on Ja'Marr Chase vs. Penei Sewell debate and why the Bengals drafted the former

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By John Sheeran | Last updated 2/29/24

The debate amongst Cincinnati Bengals fans raged on for weeks leading up to the 2021 NFL Draft. Should the fifth-overall pick be used on LSU wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase, or Oregon left tackle Penei Sewell?

Cincinnati couldn't go wrong with either prospect. They were both elite players with extremely high floors and ceilings.

Head coach Zac Taylor believed the same thing. Fast forward three years and that's proven to be true.

Chase has dominated for the Bengals while Sewell has become an All-Pro right tackle for the Detroit Lions. What once seemed like a coin-flip decision has shown both sides to be right. But Taylor and the Bengals had clear reasoning to go in the direction they chose.

Why the Bengals drafted Ja'Marr Chase over Penei Sewell

During his media availability at this week's NFL Scouting Combine, Taylor was asked about the very conflict of landing on Chase over Sewell at a time when both players would've made equal sense for the Bengals.

"We knew we weren't gonna miss with those two prospects," Taylor answered. "They were both gonna be home run guys, and I think it's worked out well with Penei in Detroit, it's worked out well with us and Ja'Marr.

"At that time, we wanted to go score touchdowns. We wanted guys that would put points on the board for us, and give concern to the defenses, and Ja'Marr was that guy."

Touchdowns came aplenty. Chase scored 13 in that 2021 regular season on his way to Rookie of the Year honors and added another one in the team's first AFC Championship victory in over 30 years.

Chase's instant impact erased any and all doubt that the Bengals had chosen what was right for them. Taylor also conceded to the fact that his collegiate history with Joe Burrow didn't hurt the decision.

"It certainly helped that [Ja'Marr] and Joe had the seasons together they had, so that's something you're ever rarely going to replicate in a situation like we found. We already knew what Joe thought of Ja'Marr, and how he would fit with that style of receiver. So that I think made the decision a little bit easier for us."

The Bengals' trajectory as a franchise completely altered once Burrow and Chase reunited on the same team. While offensive line issues that may've been solved with the addition of Sewell have persisted since then, the Bengals surely cannot complain with how the last three years have looked since making Chase the pick.

"We're fortunate how it played out for us, and I think Detroit is probably pretty happy with how it played out for them as well."

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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