Chase Brown

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.