Chase was uncharacteristically fired up.
The Cincinnati Bengals were driving down the field with a chance to score a touchdown to take the lead over the Kansas City Chiefs. During the drive, star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had an uncharacteristically intense interaction with the game’s head official, Alex Kemp.
After Chase felt he was pulled down by his face mask, or possibly with a hip-drop tackle, the wide receiver got upset after Kemp didn’t throw a flag.
Instead of saying what he had to say and heading back to the huddle, Chase doubled down, and quarterback Joe Burrow eventually had to get between his No. 1 receiver and the referee.
Ja’Marr Chase gets called for an unsportsmanlike conduct here. It looks like he is complaining about a missed facemask call. The broadcast conveniently only shows the replay of Chase complaining and not the tackle… #CINvsKC pic.twitter.com/joM2DX1PIp
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) September 15, 2024
Here’s two minutes with Ja’Marr Chase following an emotional loss in Kansas City. #Bengals @FOX19 pic.twitter.com/2dA5iCOJs9
— Regan Holgate (@HolgateRegan) September 16, 2024
The penalty was poorly timed for the Bengals. It knocked them out of field goal range and stalled what was shaping up to be a successful drive. Luckily for the Bengals, Burrow found tight end Mike Gesicki on the third-and-22 play for 10 yards. Evan McPherson was able to come out on the field and nail a 53-yard field goal, his third of the game.
Here’s what the official had to say about Chase’s penalty after the game.
Official Alex Kemp, via pool report, on the unsportsmanlike penalty called on Ja’Marr Chase: “It’s pretty clear cut. It’s just simply abusive language toward a game official. That’s all it was. And there was really no interpretation. I’m not going to repeat to you what he said.”
— Ben Baby (@Ben_Baby) September 16, 2024
The loss definitely is not on Chase, but had he not committed the penalty, the Bengals could have eaten more clock and potentially scored a touchdown that would have put them up either 31-23 (PAT) or even out of reach at 32-23 (two-point conversion).
Alas, 0-2 is here yet again.
