Cincinnati Bengals star wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase has had a good deal to be frustrated about lately. He didn't get the contract extension that he wanted over the offseason and he feels like he was "misled" by the Bengals regarding the whole situation. Plus, he's had a slow start to the 2024 season on the field.
After catching six passes for 62 yards against the New England Patriots in Week 1, Chase had just four receptions for 35 yards in Week 2 against Kansas City -- a 26-25 loss. Late in that game, Chase was whistled for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that negated a first-down catch he had just made and instead moved the Bengals backwards 15 yards.
The Bengals were ultimately still able to end the drive with a field goal, but the penalty effectively ended their hope of ending it with a touchdown, so it was pretty costly. Chase was apparently miffed that the defender who tackled him after his reception wasn't whistled for a penalty for a hip-drop tackle and he was visibly upset on the sideline.
Ja'Marr Chase's frustrations stem from him believing he was hit with a hip drop tackle, per @tracywolfson pic.twitter.com/xcigjAh2je
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 15, 2024
Ja'Marr Chase went to far with referee Alex Kemp
But Chase took it took far with the words he used while speaking to referee Alex Kemp, who eventually threw the flag after absorbing Chase's ire for a good bit. Chase must have used some magic words.
The star wide receiver didn't want to walk about the penalty after the game, but Kemp shed some insight into his decision to call a penalty, noting that Chase used "abuse language" in the exchange, but refusing to elaborate any further.
"It's pretty clear cut. It's just simply abusive language toward a game official," Kemp said in the pool report. "I'm not going to repeat to you what he said, but there was no interpretation with the language that he used. Just abusive language."
Ja’Marr Chase was asked a few times about the unsportsmanlike penalty and said he was not talking about it.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) September 16, 2024
Ref Alex Kemp did in the pool report.
He calls it “abusive language toward a game official.”
Full explanation: pic.twitter.com/ZFxjUFCyIJ
So there you have it. NFL referees can take a good amount of heat, but Chase apparently crossed the line in what he said to Kemp. He will have to do a better job of controlling his emotions moving forward.
The Bengals will also have to do a better job of getting him involved in the offense. There's no reason that a player as talented as Chase should only have 10 receptions for 97 yards and no touchdowns through two games of action. Getting him going should be a focal point for the team in Week 3.