Cincinnati Bengals star wide receiver Ja’Mar Chase suffered a shoulder injury in Saturday’s huge win over the Minnesota Vikings and did not return to action.
There had not been much clarification about Chase’s status heading into Week 16 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday. Until now.
NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday evening that Chase had an MRI, which showed that he’s dealing with a separated shoulder. Per Rapoport, the star wide receiver is expected to miss some time.
“The expectation is that he is sidelined for this week’s game against the Steelers, and it could extend beyond that, as well,” report on Ja’Marr Chase injury.
By virtue of their overtime win against Minnesota, the Bengals find themselves at 8-6 heading into Week 16. They are currently the sixth seed in the AFC despite losing star quarterback Joe Burrow to a season-ending injury back on Nov. 16.
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Jake Browning, Cincinnati Bengals under pressure following Ja’Marr Chase injury news
An undrafted free agent out of Washington back in 2019, Browning did not attempt his first regular-season pass until September of this season. Since taking over for the aforementioned Burrow, he has played exceptional football.
That includes completing a whopping 74% of his passes with seven touchdowns and three interceptions en route to leading Cincinnati to a 3-1 record in four starts.
Now that Chase is set to miss this coming week’s game against the division-rival Steelers, the onus is on Browning and others to step up. After all, he’s among the best and most-productive receivers in the NFL.
- Ja’Marr Chase stats (2023): 93 receptions, 1,156 yards, 7 TD
With Chase sidelined, expect to see an uptick in targets for Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. The latter caught a huge pass from Browning in overtime against Minnesota, setting up the game-winning field goal.
Saturday’s game against the 7-7 Steelers is going to be absolutely huge when it comes to the AFC Playoff picture. Unfortunately, Chase’s injury puts Cincinnati behind the proverbial eight-ball even more.