Cincinnati Bengals receiver Ja'Marr Chase entered Week 3 wanting the football more. He got it -- even if it wasn't the deep shots.
Entering Week 3, Chase had 10 catches for 70 receiving yards combined in the first two weeks. He more than doubled those numbers in Monday night's 19-16 win over the L.A. Rams. Chase set a career-high with 12 catches, going for 141 yards.
"Coming into this game, I was going to feed my guy," Joe Burrow said on Monday night, via the team's official website. "He was due for one. I knew he was going to have a big game. Just the way he was talking all week, he was excited to play this one. He showed up big for us. He showed why he's one of the best."
With Burrow still nursing a calf injury, the Bengals offense wasn't the splash-play squad we've come accustomed to watching. However, they grew more efficient as the game wore on, and Chase began to take advantage of short throws against the Rams D.
"All I can do is make him look good," Chase said. "That's the best I can do, make him look good. He helps me look good. We make each other look good. Just being there for him. That's all I can do is be there for him."
The most explosive play of the game came on one of the few times Burrow moved out of the pocket, faking a toss, rolling right and finding Chase for 43 yards on a double move. But the play that might have shown the Chase-Burrow combo was really rounding back into form came on a third-quarter third-and-10 when Burrow put a ball perfectly behind Chase, who reached back to snag it for a first down. If Burrow leads the WR there, at best, the pass is broken up and more likely an INT. The QB put it in the only window he could and trusted Chase would make the play. The Bengals scored their only TD of the game four plays later.
"Joe changed the play. That was a good audible by Joe," Chase said. "He threw a back shoulder so I didn't get hit. He was helping me not collide from the safety coming down. That's a good ball."
A great ball. And a sign that even when Burrow isn't close to 100%, he can still make game-changing plays for the Bengals as they attempt to dig out of another early-season hole.
