Ja’Marr Chase and Dexter Lawrence may not be built the same way, but they can joke around like teammates once the pads come on.
That was the vibe on the latest edition of Chase’s podcast, Chasing No 1, where Lawrence and Tee Higgins joined him and the conversation turned to an early training camp moment when Chase tried to needle the 6-5, 350-pound defensive tackle. Lawrence didn’t exactly take the bait.
“I know my first time when I meet a lot of people they be telling me they don't understand what I'm saying, cause I slur my words, so I be having to slow down a lot. But for him, that wasn't the case.
He was just a cool dude from the jump. You know what I'm saying?
He came in right away," Chase said. "I think the first time I tried to talk a little smack to him at practice, he was like, 'I don't mess with little dudes.'
I just stopped messing with him. I just walked away."
The exchange fit Lawrence’s personality in a way that’s easy to imagine. He may come off quiet when the cameras are rolling, but on the field, he can hold his own in the trash-talk department.
The conversation also came with a look at the kind of celebration Chase and Higgins used last weekend, one the NFL league office seems to prefer over the people’s elbow. Neither Bengals player was fined for the new motion they used this week.
Chase also addressed the fine he received last week and made clear he sees end-zone celebrations as part of the game.
“I can't really control what they do and how they handle it," Chase said to round out his comments on the fine he got last week. "I'm just speaking up for myself on how certain situations play out at the end of the day.
When I was a kid growing up, you know what I'm saying? That's all they did when they got to the end zone.
You know what I'm saying? So one of the big reasons, a lot of kids back in the day about my time are trying to get the end zone.
We trying to make a celebration to do some fire stuff. They say when you get to the end zone, it's a party.
You have fun in the end zone. That's what it's always been.”
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