4 observations from the Bengals’ preseason loss to Washington

The Cincinnati Bengals‘ preseason record fell to 1-1 on Friday night when they lost to Washington Football Team by a score of 17-13.

While it’s never a good thing to come to hasty conclusions based on preseason play, there is still an opportunity for the team, fans, and media alike to leave with some takeaways. The Bengals may have lost, but that doesn’t mean all of those takeaways are going to be bad. In the preseason, winning is not of much importance.

There were bright spots and low points for the Bengals when they visited Fed Ex Field on Friday night. In the following slides, I will take a look at just a few of my observations.

Bengals Observations – Ja’Marr Chase’s drops are becoming a real concern

The first thing that came to mind after the game on Friday night was probably the same for just about everyone: fifth overall draft pick Ja’Marr Chase and his trouble securing the football.

The rookie wide receiver was targeted three times, each attempt being on third down, and he dropped all three passes. Needless to say, social media went into a frenzy. He’s obviously a bust, right? No, not even close to it.

Despite the internet’s first instinct being to pounce at the sight of blood in the water, it’s not time to panic yet. Chase is a rookie who was away from football for a year, so there are bound to be hiccups. He will surely get these issues resolved in due time.

However, it’s still a cause for concern. The Bengals need Chase to contribute right away, they don’t have time to wait around for him to figure things out if they want to compete early on.

Chase was drafted because he was seen as a surefire, NFL-ready wide receiver with established chemistry with their quarterback, if he struggles early on in his rookie year it could be a setback for their hopes of making the playoffs.

Overall, Chase’s drops aren’t a long-term issue, but at least for the immediate future, this offense could be in major trouble if he doesn’t get his act together soon.