Thinking About a Ja'Marr Chase Bengals Jersey? Read This Before You Pick a Size

My first Bengals jersey was a Chad Johnson I bought used off a guy in Columbus, and it fit like a pup tent. Lesson learned. So when I finally went in on a Ja'Marr Chase jersey, Bengals orange and black, I did the boring stuff first — measured myself, compared three versions side by side, and texted two friends who already owned one. This is the short version of what I found out.

Which brings me to the thing I tell everyone who asks: if you're thinking about a Ja'Marr Chase Bengals jersey, read this before you pick a size, because return shipping is on you and the sizing on these things is genuinely weird. It's not a scam, it's just how the Nike cut runs.

First, the versions. There are basically three tiers and they are not the same shirt.

• Game — the entry level. Numbers and name are printed, not sewn. Light, cheap-ish, great for a first jersey or a kid.
• Limited — stitched numbers, stitched nameplate, slightly heavier fabric, a bit more tailored through the shoulders.
• Elite — what the players actually wear. Stretchy, water-repellent-ish, tighter cut, and priced like a car payment.

Last time I looked, the Game sat around $130, Limited jumped to roughly $175, and Elite sailed past $300. The printed Game version is honestly fine if you're wearing it to a bar in October. Where it falls apart is repeated washing — that print will crack eventually, usually right across the chest.

Now sizing, which is the part people get wrong. Nike's NFL jerseys run long in the torso and roomy through the chest. I'm 5'10" and about 180, and a medium swallowed me. If you're between sizes and you want it to look like a shirt rather than a nightgown, size down. If you plan to wear it over a hoodie in December, stay true to size or even go up. And if you're shopping in the women's section, don't assume the sizes translate — a women's cut usually runs one to two sizes smaller than the men's equivalent.

Worth knowing what you're actually wearing, too. Chase wore number 1 at LSU, kept it in Cincinnati, and put up 1,455 receiving yards as a rookie in 2021 — still the NFL rookie record. He won Offensive Rookie of the Year that season, helped drag the Bengals to Super Bowl LVI, and in 2024 he led the league in catches, yards, and touchdowns. That's the triple crown. For a franchise that spent decades being a punchline, having a guy like that in an orange 1 is not a small thing.

The colorways matter more than people expect. The black home jersey is the safe buy — it goes with jeans, it hides stadium mustard, it doesn't look loud. The white "White Bengal" alternate is gorgeous but shows every spill. Orange is the one you either love or never take off the hanger. I went black and I don't regret it.

A few care notes, because I've ruined a jersey before: wash cold, inside out, on a short cycle. Never put it in the dryer. No fabric softener. If yours has stitched numbers, a hot iron is your enemy — press it through a towel if you absolutely have to. Hang it, and don't hang it by the shoulders on a wire hanger or you'll get little peaks in the fabric.

As a gift, size is everything, so if you're guessing, go a size up instead of down. Nobody complains about a jersey that's slightly loose. Everybody complains about one they can't breathe in.

Bottom line: pick the tier based on how often you'll actually wear the thing, not on how good it looks in a product photo. If it's going to live on a hanger and come out for game days, the printed Game version is plenty. If it's a jersey you want to still be wearing in 2035, save up and buy the stitched one. Either way, get the size right and you'll stop thinking about it and start watching the game.