Bengals had two of NFL’s best against man coverage in 2022

Some of the best play at the wide receiver position can be seen on the roster of the Cincinnati Bengals and a recent list from Pro Football Focus confirms that fact. PFF released their 10 highest-grade wide receivers against man coverage in 2022 and two Bengals receivers made the list. The receivers in question should be of no surprise to anyone, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

T-2: Ja’Marr Chase T-2

Ja’Marr Chase finished his second NFL season and was just as impressive during his first go around. In 12 games Chase ended up with 87 receptions for 1,046 yards and nine touchdowns. For comparison, Chase had 81 receptions for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns during his rookie campaign. A good reason for his performance in 2022? Success against man coverage. PFF’s explanation for Chase being tied with Ceedee Lamb for second appears below.

“Chase truly is a big play waiting to happen, and manning him up makes it all the more dangerous – he hauled in 29 catches against man coverage for 444 yards and five touchdowns. He ranked in the top 10 in both of those categories, and he ranked top five with 197 yards after catch when facing man coverage. His 3.31 yards per route run was third among these 10 receivers listed; this young connection of Burrow to Chase is one we will continue to hear about for years to come.”

Chase has been as good as advertised coming out of LSU. It is no wonder why Joe Burrow heavily targets his former Tiger teammate. The Bengals offense is just different when they have player in Chase who is highly involved. There is a certain level of success that Cincinnati has enjoyed the past two seasons and that should continue as long as his involvement remains at this level of frequency.

7: Tee Higgins

There is something about a player who displays a certain rate of consistency year-in and year-out. This is a description that applies to Tee Higgins. Higgins has averages of 71.7 receptions for 1,009.3 yards, and 6.3 touchdowns in his first three seasons. Cincinnati appears to have the perfect complimentary player to Chase in Higgins. Just like his counterpart, Higgins was also very successful against man coverage as PFF goes on to explain.

“Impressively, 19 of Higgins’ 22 receptions against man coverage went for a first down. Higgins is a nightmare to cover one-on-one because he can win easily over the top with his 6-foot-4 frame and 97th-percentile arm length. With his basketball background, it shows up on film with his ability to box out smaller defensive backs and attack the catch point.”

If Burrow to Chase is the primary option, Burrow to Higgins is primary part two. Having two excellent receiving options makes Burrow’s job all the more easier. Both of those pass catchers being able to carve up man coverage on a weekly basis also helps. The fact that Burrow knows that someone will make a play when needed must be incredibly comforting. A lot of times quarterbacks have to hope for the best with the worst coming to fruition. It really does not seem like that is the case for Burrow and his top two receiving targets.

At the end of the day it is a pick your poison proposal when lining up against the Bengals offense. Not many teams even have one player as good as Chase or Higgins. The fact that Cincinnati rosters both says a lot about how difficult is it to limit them. Limit is the correct word here as stopping them entirely is near impossible. Expect more of the same from the Bengals offense moving forward as keeping this trio together is paramount to their future success.