The Cincinnati Bengals had a tough 2025 season, marked by the lengthy injury to Joe Burrow and the struggles of rookie Shemar Stewart, as well as a 6-11 record, making it far from an ideal season.
While Ja'Marr Chase put up some strong numbers once again, there was one statistic that stood out as the hardest to believe. It's not his 23 targets against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but a season-long statistic he's tied with Stewart in.
As Underdog NFL shared, somehow, Chase and rookie pass rusher Stewart finished the 2025 season with the same number of tackles as one another. Chase and Stewart both had five tackles this season.
Ja'Marr Chase, Shemar Stewart tie in unbelievable stat
Drafted 17th overall by the Bengals to improve their defense, Stewart played in just eight total games, racking up one pass defended, one sack, 11 total tackles, with five solo tackles this season.
Chase, on five of the Bengals' many turnovers this season, recorded the tackle to stop the return. The Bengals' superstar wide receiver finished the season with five tackles, the same amount that Stewart had all season.
While Chase played double the number of games that Stewart did, this is still a brutal statistic that highlights just how badly this season went.
The Bengals' offense turned the ball over too often, which led to Chase recording five total tackles this season. Stewart, while he was only playing for half the season, did not have the impact of a first-round draft pick.
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It was far from an ideal year for the Bengals, and this statistic is a great encapsulation of how the Bengals fared in the 2025 season.
Their best receiver finished with the same number of solo tackles as their first-round draft pick this season.
This isn't the only time Chase has recorded tackles during a season. He had six tackles in 2024, two in 2023, four in 2022, and two (with one assist) in 2021.
The issue here is that his total solo tackles this season were equal to those of Stewart. While there's some flukiness to this statistic, it's still a brutal one that highlights just how bad this season has gone for the Bengals and Stewart.
It's still far too early to be concerned about Stewart in the NFL, but this statistic will be remembered for a while as a brutal way for a first-round defender to enter the NFL, by not surpassing his team's top receiver in tackles on the year.
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