As an organization, the Cincinnati Bengals likely cost themselves a lot of money by failing to come to an agreement on a long-term contract extension with star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase last offseason. It’s almost like they forgot that the salary cap increases every year, or they thought Chase’s value might drop. The opposite occurred.

Instead of sulking about the fact that he didn’t get the long-term security he was seeking, Chase went out and put himself in the best possible position moving forward by turning in one of the best seasons by a wide receiver in recent memory in 2024.

Chase achieved the vaunted Triple Crown by leading the league in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. He was named a finalist for the AP Offensive Player of the Year award as a result of his productive play. His season was so good that it’s even being recognized by the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Chase obviously boosted his own value in a major way with his monster season, and now he’ll have all of the leverage at the negotiating table with Cincinnati. So, instead of having him already locked up at last offseason’s rate, the Bengals will have no choice now but to make him the highest-paid receiver in league history.

Ja’Marr Chase gets massive contract projection after historic season

So, how much did the Bengals actually cost themselves? Let’s look at the numbers.

Last offseason, Spotrac provided a projection for an extension for Chase that came in at $120 million over four years, with an average annual value of $30 million. It also included $46 million guaranteed at signing and $70 million partially guaranteed.

This year, Spotrac provided an updated projection that accounts for Chase’s historic season and the rise in the cap. The new projection comes in at $145 million over four years, with a whopping $100 million guaranteed. For all of the non-math majors out there, that’s a difference of $25 million in total money and $54 million in fully-guaranteed money.

It’s also an average annual value of $36.5 million, which is $6.5 million more than the previous projection. Money that could have been allocated elsewhere to address one of the team’s plethora of needs had they simply signed Chase last summer, when it was evident to virtually everyone outside of the front office in Cincinnati that they needed to get a deal done.

And none of this is on Chase. He can’t be blamed for wanting to maximize his value, and he shouldn’t be expected to take some sort of hometown discount for the Bengals. He’s established himself as arguably the best receiver in the league over his first four seasons, and he deserves to be paid like it.

The organization shot itself in the foot by not getting a deal done with Chase last year. The most important thing for Cincinnati moving forward is not compounding that mistake by again failing to lock him up long-term.