Justin Jefferson wants Ja’Marr Chase to get his big payday, but the Vikings‘ star wideout doesn’t want business to come at the expense of his friend and former college teammate missing regular-season games.
Jefferson, who this offseason signed an extension that made him the highest-paid wideout in NFL history, said that he is confident that Chase will “be about his business and show up when he needs to show up.” At this point, though, Chase is still not practicing as he and the Bengals are still trying to come to terms on an extension.
“I hope that he gets the contract that he’s looking for, but I also hope that he plays it smart and not let it get in the way of, you know, his greatness and being on that field,” Jefferson said on “Up & Adams.”
Ironically, Jefferson — to no fault of his own — is reportedly one of the hurdles that may be standing between Chase and the Bengals from getting a deal done. Chase reportedly wants an extension that is one penny more than Jefferson’s four-year, $140 million extension that he signed earlier this summer.
“I mean, it’s always congratulations,” Jefferson said on what he would say to Chase if his reported contract wish came to fruition. “It’s always love, especially on my end, about my brothers, that are making good in this league and making a name for themselves. We always talked about that in the receiving room at LSU, saying that we were able to be on that same platform as some of the top guys that were in the league while we were watching the film at LSU. So to see it all come up, come to life and for us to fulfill our dreams is definitely heartwarming.”
Jefferson is somewhat jumping the gun here. Yes, Chase is going to get paid at some point, and when he does, he will surely join Jefferson as one of the highest-paid wideouts in league history, if not the highest. But until that happens, Chase is still under his current contract, which puts his status for Sunday’s season opener against the Patriots in jeopardy as he is still not practicing.
A three-time Pro Bowler and Joe Burrow’s primary target, Chase clearly makes the Bengals offense better. But the Bengals are not out of options if he isn’t in uniform. Cincinnati still has Burrow, two-time 1,000-yard wideout Tee Higgins, emerging rookie receiver Jermaine Burton, new tight end Mike Gesicki and running backs Chase Brown and Zack Moss.
While they may be OK on Sunday without him, the Bengals will ultimately need Chase if they are going to have a chance at dethroning the Chiefs as the AFC’s top team. It’ll be interesting to see if the two sides can find a way to come to terms on an extension sometime between now and Sunday’s game.
