In a highly anticipated matchup between star receivers and big-name players in the secondary Thursday night between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ja’Marr Chase drew first blood in the primetime game.
And he was aided by a seemingly blown call by officials in the process, thanks to Clay Martin’s crew.
On a 2nd and goal from the 8-yard line following a ruled drop in the end zone, Bengals QB Joe Flacco lofted a ball to the left side to Chase in 1-on-1 coverage against Jalen Ramsey. Chase ultimately came down with the football, drawing a pass interference penalty on Ramsey in the process.
Replays showed that, at worst, it should have been offsetting pass interference penalties on Ramsey and Chase, since Chase had a clear push-off to create space late, leading to the score.
Yet, officials only called the penalty on Ramsey, giving Cincinnati the touchdown.
From the other angle, you can see Chase push off on Ramsey late in the rep. Ramsey was very physical on the rep, too, and should have been flagged. But a no-call on Chase was rather surprising. It should have been called on both, and yet the Bengals got some home cooking.
That drive seemed to spark the Bengals, too, as Cincinnati was able to run the football with Chase Brown, breaking out from an early-season malaise in the ground game to provide the offense with serious balance. Flacco hit some throws, too, and things started to heat up inside Paycor Stadium.
Right after Chase’s touchdown, the Bengals picked off Aaron Rodgers on an ill-advised deep shot to DK Metcalf, and the Bengals marched right back down the field, going 76 yards in three plays. The drive was highlighted by a 37-yard Brown run before Flacco hit Tee Higgins for a 29-yard touchdown in which he broke one tackle and raced through the heart of the Steelers’ defense for the score and the lead.
