The Cincinnati Bengals have put together one of the best offenses in the NFL. The backbone of their explosive attack is quarterback Joe Burrow, who is surrounded by arguably the best wide receiver trio in the league.
Leading the way is 2021 first-round pick Ja’Marr Chase, who was college teammates with Burrow at LSU. His running mate is Tee Higgins, a second-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft out of Clemson.
On most teams in the NFL, Higgins would be the No. 1 option, but in Cincinnati, he has staked his claim as the best No. 2. Last but not least, working out of the slot is Tyler Boyd, a veteran who has taken a beat seat to his dynamic young teammates but remains a steady, consistent contributor.
They are ready to once again wreak havoc on opposing pass defenses as slowing down that trio is very hard. All three are capable of winning at different levels of the field, but it is the work that Chase and Higgins do on deep passes that really stands out.
Since 2021, there haven’t been any wide receivers who produced more on 15+ yard passes than those two. According to PFF, Chase leads the league with 14 touchdowns on 15+ yard targets. Higgins leads the league with a passer rating of 124.1 when targeted at that distance.
Most teams are lucky when they have one player who can win down the field consistently; Burrow has been spoiled on the Bengals because he has two. When defenses scheme to take away the deep pass, Boyd is there to clean up running intermediate and underneath routes without much resistance.
It should come as no surprise that the Bengals have become perennial contenders in the AFC on the back of their offense. Capable of beating you in a number of different ways, Cincinnati looks to be as dangerous as ever once again entering 2023.
