The Bengals beat the Titans 43-36 in overtime on Sunday at Paycor Stadium. It was an emotionally charged game for star wideout Ja'Marr Chase. Despite another poor start, the offense failed to meet his high standards. Chase finished with 11 catches on 16 targets, accumulating 141 yards and scoring a touchdown.
Chase quickly said Tennessee couldn't cover both him and Tee Higgins, who also finished with over 100 receiving yards.
"They couldn't cover us the whole game," Chase said. He expressed his dissatisfaction and hunger to improve, acknowledging he was "not satisfied" with his performance.
Why do the Bengals continue to get off to slow starts?
"I'm not sure about that; you should ask Zac (Taylor)," Chase said. "It's not my responsibility. Ask Zac."
Chase remained silent when asked whether he felt disgusted in the second quarter after catching a 30-yard touchdown reception. "No comment." He was visibly frustrated throughout the postgame locker room interview and didn't seem interested.
The frustrated Chase voiced his frustration to his teammates and Taylor on the sideline after Mike Gesicki's 25-yard touchdown gave the Bengals a 29-28 lead in the fourth quarter.
"Ja'Marr is a leader for us, and we're gonna follow," Gesicki said on Monday . "There's a lot of urgency in this locker room, and I've felt that from really since the start of OTAs. And our leaders have been vocal about it. And Ja'Marr is one of the best players in the world, so I think we should follow his lead. He has every right to express himself, and I think especially when he doesn't allow that to affect his play, like he goes out there and still makes plays, and it's all coming from good intentions. So he just wants us to reach our potential and maximize what we have in this locker room."
Taylor made it clear that he's OK with Chase being frustrated during the game.
"That's just part of the game. It's a tight game; it's an emotional game," Taylor said on Sunday. "We'll work through it. He had a big day for us and came up really big at the end in overtime. That's just one of those things that happens in a football game."
Despite the apparent frustration, Chase and Taylor share one objective: winning. Chase's exceptional performance, even during high-pressure situations, sets the stage for the Bengals to refine their execution and build momentum as they prepare for next week's matchup in Madrid against the Atlanta Falcons.
For more on the Bengals' win over the Titans, watch the video below:
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/bengals/onsi as Ja'Marr Chase Clearly Frustrated After Bengals' Sloppy Win: 'Ask Zac' .
