The Bengals’ offense took a hit early Sunday, and the update on Ja’Marr Chase wasn’t the one Cincinnati wanted.
Chase left the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the early second quarter after Jarrian Jones grabbed his facemask and slammed him to the turf following a four-yard gain on 2nd-and-21 from Jacksonville’s 33-yard line. Jones was flagged for a 15-yard penalty on the play.
After getting back to his feet, Chase headed to the locker room with a trainer and was checked for a concussion. By halftime, the Bengals had ruled him out for the rest of the game after announcing he had suffered one. Chase finished with three catches for 27 yards.
Now the focus shifts to what comes next. Chase will have to clear concussion protocol before he can suit up for a Week 5 road matchup with the Miami Dolphins (Fox, 1 p.m.
ET). That process includes five separate steps, among them a clean bill of health from an independent neurologist.
Recovery can move quickly, but it can also stretch over a few days or a few weeks.
The Bengals are hoping for the former, because Chase has been one of the NFL’s most productive receivers again this season. Entering Sunday, he was tied for 10th in receptions with 18 and fourth in touchdown catches with three. He also delivered one of the league’s most eye-catching plays in a 20-6 Week 2 road win over the Houston Texans, when he hauled in a 32-yard touchdown from Joe Burrow.
That kind of production is exactly why Chase has become Burrow’s top target since arriving in Cincinnati as the 2021 first-round pick. From 2021-25, he ranked second in the NFL in receiving yards with 6,837 on 520 receptions and second in touchdown catches with 54.
Cincinnati does have depth at receiver, with Tee Higgins serving as a strong WR2. Higgins entered Sunday ranked 10th in the league in receiving yards with 244. Even so, this offense is at its best when Chase is on the field and functioning at full speed.
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Trevor Lawrence Faces An Early AFC Test Jaguars Fans Will Feel
The Jaguars head into Week 4 with a good early read on where they stand, and Sundays trip to Cincinnati figures to say plenty more. Jacksonville and the Bengals both sit at 2-1, which gives this matchup a little more weight than your usual September road game, especially with kickoff set for 1 p.m. ET at Paycor Stadium and a national CBS audience watching Trevor Lawrence get another AFC measuring stick.
Lawrence has been steady enough to keep Jacksonville in the mix, but Joe Burrow and the Bengals bring the kind of quarterback test that can expose what still needs cleaning up on both sides of the ball. The numbers around each offense and defense point to two teams trying to separate from the pack, and for the Jaguars, this is the sort of early conference game that can shape how seriously the rest of the league takes them. [Read more 🡒]
Tee Higgins Injury Leaves Bengals Facing One Big Offensive Concern
Tee Higgins night ended early against the Jaguars after the Cincinnati wide receiver suffered an adductor injury late in the game and tried, unsuccessfully, to return. For a Bengals offense that leans heavily on its top pass catchers, any issue with Higgins is worth watching closely, especially when it comes on the heels of a physical matchup and leaves another layer of uncertainty in the passing game.
Cincinnati has not offered a recovery timeline, and the next step is further evaluation to determine just how long Higgins might be sidelined. For Jacksonville, the injury was one of the more notable late-game developments from a contest that already carried its share of contact and consequences, and it now puts the Bengals in wait-and-see mode with a key receiver whose availability can shape how that offense looks in the coming weeks. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Got The Break They Needed As Burrow Meltdown Drew Heat
The Jaguars did not have to do much to feel the benefit of a Bengals collapse, but they were on the right side of it when Joe Burrows night unraveled late. Burrow threw two interceptions in the game against Jacksonville, including a costly red zone pick in the fourth quarter that kept Cincinnati from seizing the lead when it had the chance.
One takeaway for Jacksonville is that those kinds of breaks matter in a league where a single drive can change everything. Even with one interception wiped out by a roughing-the-passer penalty, the Bengals still left plenty of frustration behind, and the criticism that followed only added to the sense that the Jaguars escaped a game in which Burrow and Cincinnati handed them an opening. [Read more 🡒]