Getty Odell Beckham Jr. (L) & Ja'Marr Chase (R)
Every now and then there’s a player that comes around that is so talented, they can nearly single-handedly revolutionize the game and take an NFL team to new heights. The New York Giants believe to have that in running back Saquon Barkley. Odell Beckham Jr. had a similar effect on the team’s offense a few years back.
Now, with the 2020 NFL Draft in the books, and eyes looking ahead to 2021, a wide receiver hailing from OBJ’s alma mater of LSU, Ja’Marr Chase, is carrying similar potential.
But just how good can Chase truly be? Well, according to one NFC exec “He’s better already than Odell [Beckham] was coming out,” pegging the Biletnikoff Award winner “dynamic” and “a game-changer.” While SI’s Albert Breer believes that was Chase eligible for this past April’s draft “he’d probably have been the first receiver to go.”
Giants Land Chase in 2021 Mock
While he wasn’t eligible this year, Chase is likely to enter the draft in 2021, and chances are he won’t wait long to hear his name called. Interestingly enough, Draft Wire has predicted that the LSU star lands in New York with the Giants, once again following in the footsteps of Beckham.
No. 4 – Ja’Marr Chase, WR, LSU
Another LSU wide receiver? Yes, but another really good one. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Chase won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s best receiver in 2019 with an 84-catch, 1,789-yard performance that resulted in 20 touchdowns. Chase was a first-team All-SEC selection and a unanimous choice for All-American.
Any NFL team would love to have Chase, who would complete the Giants’ “triplets” along with quarterback Daniel Jones and running back Saquon Barkley.
The lone three players selected ahead of Chase include Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence (Redskins), Ohio State QB Justin Fields (Jaguars) and Oregon OT Penei Sewell (Bengals).
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The Best WR Prospect in Recent Memory?
It’s important to note that mock drafts these early rarely pan out. New Jacksonville Jaguars wideout Laviska Shenault is a prime example of this. Pegged as “The Next Julio Jones” this time a year ago, Shenault didn’t come off the board until Day 2 of the 2019 NFL Draft.
However, it’s difficult to not get wide-eyed when seeing Chase torch SEC defenses on a week-in, week-out basis.
In 2019, Chase led the country in both receiving yards (1,498) and touchdowns (18), the latter of which cemented him atop the school’s all-time single-season touchdown list, tying the all-time SEC record in the midst.
Chase’s on-field brilliance helped him edge out the likes of Dallas Cowboys’ future 1st-rounder CeeDee Lamb, amongst other notable names to take home the Biletnikoff Award, handed out to the top wide receiver in the nation.
Chase will need to prove he can sustain his greatness in 2020 without last year’s Heisman Trophy winner and new Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow tossing him the rock. However, you’d likely be hard-pressed to bet against a player of his superior talents.