Ja'Marr Chase has 'proven his worth' to Cincinnati Bengals | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC

poor Zack Taylor caught between a star player that deserves to be paid right and a front office that is notoriously historically and currently cheap yeah and this is what it comes down to it's as simple as the rookie weight scale was put in place in 2011 to ensure that draft bus don't run away with millions they never earn the problem is the guys who earn it have to wait longer than they should to get it and it's that fourth year where in this case for example the Bengals will get the services of Jamar Chase for 4.8 million I always say it never gets cheaper and it's not going to get cheaper if they wait a year it's going to cost them more than 35 million per year in new money to do it and get it done and make him happy but they will have gotten him for this year for 4.8 million I think that's why Mike Brown is trying to drag his feet and we've seen way too many teams refus to reward a great player after three seasons burrow got his last year after three seasons right and today's the day this is where it's been pointing all along burrow got his contract on the day that we were here in Kansas City for the regular season opener and he didn't practice some in the preseason he had the calf injury he didn't have the same Vibe as the deliberate intentional I'm not practicing until I get paid but he got it today if Chase doesn't get it today it's going to get ugly right you're going to hear some stuff about what's been going on behind the scenes there's going to be some back and forth will he play on Sunday he's not going to just leave you can't just leave but all of a sudden my back hurts my my head hurts my hamstrings tight you get into the classic hold in where it's a guy who is taking advantage of any bump and Bruise that he might have any sprain or strain to not play that's what this morphs into if they don't get this done today the question is what and and I've heard that well he's under contract for two more years I don't care the windows open for a long-term deal he deserves the money that he didn't get when he was drafted he's proven his value they need to do this today and this is where we're going to find out are the Bengals ready to be a good team or not I I agreed agreed the only thing holding them back right now is the most obvious easy contract situation in football I go they're going they're a Super Bowl team and our one worry is really owner related as it stands right now that that's the problem will they pay a guy that we know deserves to be paid as the top two or three receivers in football period it's plain and simple let alone he's a guy that went to college with your star quarterback has a great bond with him the team likes him right he brings a personality and a Pizzazz to the football team that is infectious that way I mean this is one of the more exciting guys in the game so yeah this is a no-brainer duh let's get it done Jamar Chase is special he is I I I think they know that and I did some digging on this last night I did because I I was I'm I'm sick of it I'm going wait I I'd like to hear from a few people and so I reached out to a few people close to the situation I got the sense here that yeah we saw Jamar chase out there yesterday not for everything you'll see here in the LI lied did one on ones right did some seven on seven didn't anything full team I don't think did group install he's in shape he's ready he's been doing walkthroughs he's mentally engaged all that yeah he needs some live reps I'm but I'm not really worried about that with you know one of the greater athletes in all of football we saw the guy miss a whole college football season and come back his rookie year and go whoa this guy's awesome right off the bat but I was led to believe that it is coming down the pipe and by by both people that I talked to yesterday they thought that at the latest it's done Friday that it it's there it's right there and that it's coming down the pipe here in the next 24 hours or so so hopefully that'll be good news for all of us football fans and of course the bangal fans out there I know this is the day that's been targeted all along whatever day last year Joe burrow got his deal we'll see if they do it today and it's stupid because and this isn't picking on the Bengals we said it about the Cowboys we said it about the 49ers you set the deadline before the first day of training camp because even if they get it done today how prepared is Jamar Chase how ready and we're going to watch him cidi lamb Brandon auk will somebody get in injured early in the season will they be the guy they used to be will it take them a few weeks will chase be ready to come out and have the kind of game against the Chiefs in week two that's going to be it's all the more reason to have sat down and said we're going to pay this guy anyway this year let's just do it now so he's ready but I still think from the Bengals perspective I think they were hoping to kind of stumble into what the Vikings stumbled into last year they negotiated with Justin Jefferson right up until the start of the season and I remember I think probably sitting here saying the ball was in the Vikings Court Jefferson wanted a certain structure certain dollars the Vikings didn't do it and they got him for the fourth year cheap even though they ultimately had to pay him 35 million per year in new money they got him cheap last year that's what the Bengals have been trying to do and I still think at some level they're holding out hope they can pull it off that they just get to their best number and Chase doesn't take it because if he doesn't take it great we get him for 4.8 million this year and 3 of it has already been earned that training camp roster bonus that agents use to protect the player this gets into the whole offset thing I got 3.8 of my money right now yep early in Camp the problem is it kept him from holding out he'd have held out but he would have lost 3.8 million on day three of training camp and if he would have held out maybe it'd be done by now yeah right well listen there's a difference between the Viking situation and the Bengals situation this year Viking situation the biggest thing is nobody was picking them to win the Super Bowl last year and we all knew that Kirk Cousins not being on the Vikings was a possibility right so we there there was that this is like no no no no no no the team is set it's ready right now what are we doing and you're in you're in the it's the time is now to to go win a Super Bowl and that's where I feel like it's a little bit different and I think puts a little more pressure on Mike Brown and the Bengals organization because of that cuz people and you and me are going to sit here and go there's one team out there right now that we feel good that can go into Kansas City or you know look eye to eye with Mahomes and Andy Reid and not blink and it's the Cincinnati Bangles and they're not going to do it and be able to beat the Kansas City Chiefs if they don't have Jamar chase at full strength so that's where you know this is a little bit more pressure pressurized okay than the Minnesota Viking situation last year um and by all do accounts by people I talked to even through training camp Jamar Chase is in very good shape now how good a football shape I don't know but they all seem to think it's not like he's been lazy and not ready here so he should be ready to go if he does play Sunday here's Joe burrow and I frankly believe that we wouldn't get to this point with Chase because of the connection to burough and they've been doing everything they can to Plate Joe burrow they want Joe burrow to want to stay with the Bengals they sold the naming rights to the stadium for crying out loud to make sure they had enough cash to pay Joe burrow I thought that extended automatically to Jamar Chase it hasn't yet yet here's burrow from yesterday talking about his former college teammate and current NFL teammate Jamar Chase it's always been a team first win first kind of guy that's the the kind of guy that Jamar is and you want to reward those those guys how long does it take Jamar to get football ready and get in sync with you do you think he's ready to go right now yep I saw him out there today you know he looks fast strong like he always does you know I know he's been doing what he needs to do to stay ready if if he needs to be ready so uh I'm confident that if he does go out there on Sunday then uh he'll be the Jamar we all know if he does go out there on Sunday see that that's what is the difficulty of the hold in because at some point you do have to go to work and that if if he does go out there on Sunday it's almost like I I I don't know at what point I'm struggling with this at what point does the team let a guy not play because he doesn't have his contract because you have a contract to play currently you showed up you didn't hold out the hold in collapses when we get to the point where it's time to get ready to play and time to go play right and that's what's weird about this and it's all the more reason to just get it done just get it done break from the mold that we've seen where the Bengals will ride out a full rookie contract apply the franchise tag once and then say see you later they did it to Jesse Bates they're doing it to T Higgins they've historically never had a guy on the team for more than one year the only guy they signed that was franchise tagged was Carl Pickins and they cut him after one year the franchise tag is usually the death n of the relationship because they go back to the draft and they get cheap young guys and they don't care about losing the star they don't care if the fans are like hey I bought this guy's Jersey oh well you'll buy the next guy's Jersey that's how they've been whether truly changed is going to be proven in whether or not today or tomorrow they get this deal done with Jamar Chase yeah agreed agreed there and I I you get the feeling that you know we we had Zack Taylor early in the week who said he kind of put his foot in his mouth a little bit because he thought he'd be ready to go and going to practice a little right burrow has made comments like hey he's ready to go he looks good at all that I you get the sense that they feel like it's coming down the pipe here as far as the contract and and all of that but yeah it's still got to be pen meets paper and and and go that way but but yeah I'm getting the sense that we're there hi it's Mike Florio thanks for watching PFT on YouTube hit subscribe for the latest news and Analysis from pro football talk