The upcoming Week 12 matchup between the New England Patriots and Cincinnati Bengals would have brought a marquee matchup between one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks and one of the NFL’s best wide receivers.
However, there is a chance that Christian Gonzalez vs. Ja’Marr Chase will not happen after all.
Chase, after all, left the Bengals’ 34-12 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at the center of controversy. Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey was ejected from the game in the fourth quarter after throwing a punch at the All-Pro pass catcher. After the game, Ramsey claimed that Chase had spit on him to trigger his reaction.
The Cincinnati star denied any wrongdoing, but video evidence shows differently:
The NFL announced that it would be investigating the incident. If Chase is found guilty of spitting on Ramsey — and the video above is relatively clear in that regard — he is subject to a mandatory one-game suspension.
This, in turn, brings us back to the Patriots. If the league handles the matter swiftly and decides to suspend Chase, he would miss the upcoming game against New England. In turn, the 3-7 Bengals would have to go up against Gonzalez and company without their most productive pass catcher: the 25-year-old is leading the NFL with 79 catches that he took for 861 yards and five touchdowns.
Patriots vs. Bengals at Cincinnati’s Paycor Stadium is scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff on Sunday, Nov. 23.
