Chase Brown

Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle offered very high praises when speaking about the Bengals running back tandem of Zach Moss and Chase Brown during a recent interview.  After talking about how effective he believes each back will be, he then offered a little more about Chase Brown, referring to the 2nd year back out of Illinois as a “special talent and a special player.”  He then went as far as to guarantee that Brown would have “a year” and emphasized that if he played fantasy football, Brown would be the first running back he took.

The drumbeat since camp opened has been a positive one for Chase Brown.  The Bengals let go of longtime starter Joe Mixon, and signed Zach Moss to a 2 year 8 million dollar deal in the offseason, but Moss nor Mixon offer the homerun ability that Brown does with his compact frame and 4.43 40 time.  In a very limited sample, Brown averaged 5.8 yards per touch on 58 touches last season while playing in spot duty to Mixon.  Brown is currently the rb33 on underdog, and dynasty rb30 on KeepTradeCut, he has seen significant movement since training camp has opened and the positive reports began to flow.  If he is getting a majority of opportunity in the Bengals backfield, he will be a tremendous value in all formats.

Brown is universally expected to take a significant leap in his second year. However, Cincinnati’s decision to sign Zack Moss on a two-year, $8 million deal led many to anticipate Moss as the Bengals’ primary running back, relegating Brown to a change-of-pace role. Recent training camp reports suggest a more evenly divided backfield, with Brown emerging as the potential starter.

Brown has dedicated this offseason to refining his receiving skills and has consistently impressed the Bengals’ coaching staff. If training camp trends persist into the regular season, the nearly 30-pick ADP discrepancy between Moss and Brown on Underdog significantly overvalues Moss. Fantasy Managers should target Brown as a high-upside player currently available outside the top 100 picks, especially in PPR formats, due to his projected involvement in the passing game.

“I would say Andrei and Chase made the fastest improvement of any players I’ve ever had in the program of 15 years doing this. This is year seven at the NFL level,” Lieberman said. That’s a very big compliment coming from Lieberman, someone who has trained with the likes of Brandon Aiyuk and Evan Engram. Chase Brown’s biggest role and chance to handle more snaps away from Zack Moss, the receiving aspect will be paramount. Brown comes into the season as the backup but should see an increase on the field with plenty of high praise from Lieberman. “Chase looked like a running back when I started with him,” Lieberman said, “like an uncoordinated route runner. Now this guy looks like a starting slot receiver in the NFL.”

Andrei Iosivas will look to make his mark this off-season to have the chance to get on the field and possible slot play while fending off rookie Jermaine Burton. Chase being the backup and handcuff to Zack Moss, has a stronger value in redraft than Iosivas but something everyone needs to keep an eye on. There are 98 targets up for grabs since Tyler Boyd signed with the Titans.

Bengals rookie RB Chase Brown was placed on the IR with a hamstring injury. The IR status will keep him out until at least week 12.

Chase Browns rookie year has not been going as planned. Many wondered who would be the new Samaje Perine in the Cincinnati backfield alongside Joe Mixon, the answer has not been Chase Brown. The rookie was drafted in the 5th round and has had a total of 5 opportunities in his 5 games played.

Chase Brown has struggled to carve out a role on the offense, but fellow RBs Chris Evans and Trayveon Williams have not faired much better. The two veteran RBs had some level of buzz entering the year as candidates to be elevated into the Perine role but similar to Brown neither has stepped up. Although Joe Mixon continues to be ineffective as a runner the Bengals continue to feature him as a true workhorse RBs. Neither Williams nor Evans bring any standalone value, but the one to handcuff Mixon with is clearly Williams. Williams has had 11 opportunities to Evans 3. Chase Brown going on IR also opens up the door for a possible veteran addition in the case of a Mixon injury.

The Bengals brought back the 5th-year RB on a 1-year deal worth $1.23M with plans to give him the first crack at the role left open by the departure of Samaje Perine. Williams carried the ball 47 times for 238 yards while catching 8/9 targets for 64 yards over the past three seasons with the Bengals.

With Trayveon Williams set to miss several weeks, 3rd-year Chris Evans and rookie 5th-Rounder Chase Brown are the next men up. HC Zac Taylor made it clear throughout the offseason that while Williams would get the first crack, this would be an open competition behind Joe Mixon. Evans has a slight edge in experience, especially as a receiver, with 19 receptions for 192 yards and 3 TDs over the past two years, but did not carry the ball once last season.

Brown was drafted as a size/speed/production freak out of Illinois with designs to one day contribute as an all-purpose back. The 5’11, 209lb back blazed with a 4.43 40-yard-dash while recording a 95th percentile burst score. While an athletic back with over 1,800 yards from scrimmage and 27 receptions as a Senior sounds like a dream come true, Brown struggled mightily against high-level competition at the Senior Bowl. It would not be a surprise to see Cincinnati add a veteran capable of protecting Joe Burrow and and allowing Chase Brown to develop slowly as the RB3.