Following Sunday’s 34-27 loss to the Chargers, the Bengals were once again left searching for answers now that the club has fallen to 4-7.
Head coach Zac Taylor and several players mentioned the need to “finish” games properly, as six of Cincinnati’s seven losses in 2024 have been by one possession.
But when receiver Ja’Marr Chase was asked how the team can finish better, he pointed up the proverbial food chain.
“How do I do it? I don’t know,” Chase said. “Ask Zac. Ask the coaches — don’t ask me. That’s not my job.”
Not his job to finish?
“I play football on the field,” Chase said. “I don’t call plays for us, you know? So I can’t really do nothing.”
Asked if he believes plays are part of why Cincinnati isn’t finishing, Chase said, “I don’t know.”
By any metric, Chase is having another terrific season. Through 11 games, he’s caught 73 passes for 1,056 yards with 12 touchdowns — meaning he’s now had at least 1,000 yards in each of his first four seasons. He caught seven passes for 75 yards with two touchdowns on Sunday night.
But in the locker room after the loss, Chase looked and sounded like a player who’d much rather be winning.
“Yeah, it doesn’t really matter how good I perform, at the end of the day,” he said. “Having all those numbers and losing — not good.”
Taylor noted that he feels the Bengals can still make a run to the postseason. But when Chase was asked if he feels that’s realistic, he once again had no answers.
“Honestly, I don’t know, man. I have no clue,” Chase said. “I still believe in the guys in this locker room, though. We’ve just got to find ways to finish.”
