Ja’Marr Chase has impressed Joe Burrow, Bengals coaches so far

As expected, Ja’Marr Chase is living up to the hype at Cincinnati Bengals practices so far.

Chase showed up at his advertised measurements (6’0″, 205 pounds) and quickly took off by keeping defenders on their heels and coaches impressed with just how quickly he’s picked up the playbook.

Just take what Joe Burrow had to say after this week’s sessions, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:

“Everybody’s been surprised by how smart he was and I told everyone coming in, ‘He’s not going to bust, he’s going to know exactly what to do, he’s going to be a pro,’ and that’s exactly what’s happened. He’s super smooth on the field. It doesn’t look like he’s going super hard and guys are coming to me and saying is he going hard?

Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan listed off things like professionalism, Chase’s shape and how he works at getting better as big-ticket items: “I think that he’s really been impressive in that regard, as far his ability to pick it up quickly mentally and then physically being able to translate those things on the field.”

One of the biggest things about Chase coming out of LSU — besides the obvious connection with Burrow — was his wicked blend of size and power. He’s already been putting pro defenders on their heels because of his sheer play strength with the ball in his hands after running crafty routes to shake free.

Onlookers can expect this type of storyline to continue well into the summer when training camp starts. So far from what others have said, Chase is right on track to be the No. 1 wideout in the offense.