Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase knock the rust off at Bengals minicamp

Former LSU football stars Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase reunited this week in Cincinnati for the Bengals’ first minicamp of the offseason.

Burrow was the No. 1 overall pick by the Bengals in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Cincinnati selected Chase with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

The Bengals are hoping that Burrow and Chase can recreate some of the magic they found at LSU during the Tigers’ incredible 2019 season.

Chase caught 84 passes for 1,780 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2019 while catching passes from Burrow.

On Tuesday, the duo hit the practice field together for the first time in the NFL.

Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase knock the rust off

It’s going to take a while for Burrow and Chase to pick up where they left off in Baton Rouge.

Part of that is because Burrow is still recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in week 11 last season. Burrow is currently operating at around “85 percent”.

Another reason is because Burrow and Chase have to knock the rust off a bit, something the second-year quarterback mentioned on Tuesday.

“It was a little rusty at first but we got it back pretty quick,” said Burrow to reporters (via Paul Dehner Jr/Twitter).

There’s no doubt that there’s a certain level of familiarity between Burrow and Chase that’s rare for young players in the NFL to have. That should serve the Bengals’ offense well in 2021.

There will inevitably be some tough moments in games where Cincinnati manages to come through because of the connection/trust between Burrow and Chase.

I was skeptical of the Bengals’ decision to draft Chase — based solely on the team’s need for offensive linemen — but I’m really starting to believe that Cincy made the best selection possible.