The Bengals lost for the third time in four games on Sunday and their offense produced just three points, so it probably didn’t come as a great surprise to many people to see a number of social media posts showing a brief clip of wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase in the locker room with captions about him expressing his frustration with the offense.
The three-second clip does not show the question posed to Chase or any of his other thoughts about the 27-3 loss to the Titans, but captures his response.
“No. I’m open, I’m always fucking open. Excuse my profanity,” Chase said.
A longer video posted by Joe Danneman of FOX19 provides more context for Chase’s comments, however. He was asked about the amount of pressure that the Titans sent after the Bengals in Sunday’s loss.
“We couldn’t capitalize on those blitzes when they did ‘em. On our end, I guess the receivers didn’t create enough plays,” Chase said.
He was then asked if he’s felt like he’s had less time to get open, which led to the response about always being open. At the very start of that clip, Chase is asked about quarterback Joe Burrow playing through a calf injury. He said he’s never seen Burrow try to deal with something like this and expressed his confidence that things will get better soon.
“He’s just going through a little adversity, he’s gonna get back to it in no time,” Chase said.
Chase and the rest of the Bengals have every reason to feel frustrated by how this year has started, but it doesn’t seem like Chase was dropping the bomb that some believed he was dropping in his postgame comments.
The Titans offense was a mess in Week Three, but things went a lot better for them in Week Four.
Derrick Henry ran for one touchdown and threw for another, Ryan Tannehill threw a touchdown of his own, and the Titans rolled up 355 yards in a 27-3 rout of the Bengals on their home field. The result lifts the Titans to 2-2 on the season and drops the Bengals to 1-3.
Tennessee couldn’t crack the 100-yard mark while losing to the Browns by an identical 27-3 score last Sunday. Their offense needed 15 plays to pick up 40 yards and a field goal to open the game, but they scored three touchdowns in the second quarter to take control of the game.
Henry ran 22 times for 122 yards — a season-high — and Tannehill hit on 18-of-25 passes for 240 yards. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine caught the touchdown from Tannehill and he also had key completions to DeAndre Hopkins and Chris Moore as the team didn’t miss Treylon Burks much on their most productive offensive day of the season.
The key for the Titans will be finding a way to consistently get that kind of production from their offense. They’ll get a chance to see if they can do it in Indianapolis next weekend.
The Bengals have their own offensive shortcomings to sort out. They had a 72-yard drive to open the game with a field goal, but never generated that kind of momentum for the rest of the afternoon. Joe Burrow was pressured often and his calf injury likely didn’t help his efforts to avoid those rushers. Jeffery Simmons, Azeez Al-Shaair, Teair Tart, and Arden Key all had multiple quarterback hits and Trevis Gipson forced a fumble on a sack in the second half.
Burrow and company will be in Arizona next weekend and they need to find a way to get their offense in shape as soon as possible. Wide receiver Tee Higgins left the game with injured ribs and an extended absence for him won’t help that effort.
The Titans are rolling over the Bengals through 30 minutes of play in Nashville.
Derrick Henry ran for a 29-yard touchdown and then threw a two-yard pass to Josh Whyle for another score as part of a Titans scoring blitz in the second quarter. After a 3-3 first quarter, the Titans scored three touchdowns and lead the Bengals 24-3 at the break.
Henry is now 6-of-7 for 25 yards and three touchdowns as a passer. The rushing touchdown was the 80th of his career and he has 10 carries for 72 yards on the ground on Sunday.
Ryan Tannehill is 11-of-16 for 180 yards and a touchdown pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine. The Titans have 273 yards overall after picking up just 94 in last Sunday’s loss to the Browns.
The Bengals offense has been a mess since a game-opening field goal drive. Joe Burrow is 9-of-17 for 77 yards and he’s regularly under pressure from the Titans pass rush while playing on his injured calf. It will be difficult for the Bengals to slow that down while trailing by 21 points, but they will need to if they have any hope of coming back on Sunday.
The Bengals’ bid for a second straight win is off to a rough start in Tennessee.
Running back Derrick Henry ran for a 29-yard touchdown with just over three minutes to play in the first half and the Titans now lead the Bengals 17-3. The touchdown was the 80th of Henry’s NFL career.
The Bengals opened the game with a 72-yard drive that stalled short of the end zone, but they were able to take a 3-0 lead. They have picked up just 34 yards and three first downs on their next three drives, however.
The Titans got a field goal on their first drive as well and scored their first touchdown earlier in the second quarter. Ryan Tannehill hit Nick Westbrook-Ikhine for a score after a big play to DeAndre Hopkins got them down the field.
Every week we bring you all the inactives from the 1 p.m. ET games in one post, constantly updated with the latest information.
The Browns will not have quarterback Deshaun Watson on Sunday, but they will have tight end David Njoku.
Njoku was added to the injury report on Saturday after suffering burns to his hands and face in a fire pit accident and head coach Kevin Stefanski said that the team had to see if he could put a helmet on before deciding on his status. Njoku passed that test and got the green light to play against the Ravens.
Watson is out with the shoulder injury that limited him to just a few throws in practice this week. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson will make his first NFL start.
On the Ravens side, running back Justice Hill, center Tyler Linderbaum, and safety Kyle Hamilton are all active after being listed as questionable. Safety Marcus Williams was also in that group, but he is inactive.
Ravens at Browns
Ravens: WR Odell Beckham Jr., WR Rashod Bateman, T Ronnie Stanley, CB Marlon Humphrey, EDGE Odafe Oweh, S Marcus Williams, QB Josh Johnson
Browns: QB Deshaun Watson, TE Zaire Mitchell-Paden, CB Kahlef Hailassie, C Luke Wypler, DE Isaiah McGuire, DT Siaki Ika
Dolphins at Bills
Dolphins: QB Skylar Thompson, EDGE Jaelan Phillips, S DeShon Elliott, CB Eli Apple, C Connor Williams, TE Tyler Kroft
Bills: S Jordan Poyer, CB Kaiir Elam, T Germain Ifedi, OL Alec Anderson, DT Poona Ford
Broncos at Bears
Broncos: LB Frank Clark, C Alex Forsyth, LB Josey Jewell, OLB Ronnie Perkins, DT Mike Purcell, S Justin Simmons, S JL Skinner.
Bears: DB Eddie Jackson, DB Jaylon Johnson, QB Nathan Peterman, WR Chase Claypool, RB D’onta Foreman
Steelers at Texans
Steelers: QB Mason Rudolph, P Pressley Harvin, OL James Daniels, WR Gunner Olszewski, NT Breiden Fehoko
Texans: CB Tavierre Thomas, LB Denzel Perryman, QB Case Keenum, RB Dare Ogunbowale, OL Michael Deiter, T Josh Jones, T Laremy Tunsil
Vikings at Panthers
Vikings: S Lewis Cine, TE Nick Muse, C Garrett Bradbury, DL Khyiris Tonga, QB Jaren Hall
Panthers: RB Raheem Blackshear, WR Jonathan Mingo, S Xavier Woods, CB Sam Webb, LB Deion Jones, T David Sharpe
Rams at Colts
Rams: RB Zach Evans, OL Zach Thomas, OL Alaric Jackson, DL Earnest Brown
Colts: QB Sam Ehlinger, CB Darrell Baker Jr., DE Isaiah Land, LB Cameron McGrone, C Ryan Kelly, T Bernhard Raimann, TE Will Mallory
Buccaneers at Saints
Buccaneers: LB SirVocea Dennis, CB Jamel Dean, CB Derrek Pitts Jr., LB Markees Watts, OL Brandon Walton, TE Payne Durham, DL Calijah Kancey
Saints: QB Jake Luton, WR A.T. Perry, CB Paulson Adebo, DB Jordan Howden, OL Cesar Ruiz, TE Foster Moreau, DE Kyle Phillips
Commanders at Eagles
Commanders: RB Chris Rodriguez Jr., DE K.J. Henry, T Trent Scott, G Chris Paul, TE Curtis Hodges, WR Mitchell Tinsley
Eagles: WR Quez Watkins, QB Tanner McKee, S Sydney Brown, RB Rashaad Penny, S Justin Evans, OL Tyler Steen, DT Moro Ojomo
Bengals at Titans
Bengals: CB DJ Ivey, LB Akeem Davis-Gaither, LB Devin Harper, OL Trey Hill, OL Jackson Carman, TE Irv Smith
Titans: WR Treylon Burks, OL Peter Skoronski, LB Luke Gifford, DB Elijah Molden, OL Jaelyn Duncan, QB Will Levis