Star receiver Ja’Marr Chase suffers a concussion in Bengals’ loss to Jaguars

CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati Bengals All-Pro wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase suffered a concussion when he took a hard hit during the second quarter Sunday against Jacksonville.

The Bengals couldn’t overcome his absence, losing 22-17 to the Jaguars to fall back to .500 after their 2-0 start.

“Certainly this isn’t Armageddon or anything,” quarterback Joe Burrow said. “We’re still in a great spot. This game didn’t play out the way we wanted it to. But that’s life in the NFL. We had our opportunities (to win) the last two weeks. We played a good team this week and came up short.”

Chase caught a pass from Burrow at the Jaguars 29-yard line before cornerback Jarrian Jones grabbed him by the facemask as he tried to make the tackle. Linebacker Ventrell Miller then came in to finish the tackle and hit the sixth-year receiver. Chase hit his head on the turf as he went down with 12:04 remaining in the first half.

Chase was on the ground for a couple of minutes before going into the sideline medical tent. He then went into the locker room before being declared out at halftime. He came into the game with 18 receptions for 185 yards and three touchdowns, and he had three catches for 26 yards during the first 18 minutes on Sunday.

“Ja’Marr is a big part of the plan, but again, we’ve got to adjust, so I don’t want that to be the story,” coach Zac Taylor said.

Other receivers stepped up in Chase’s absence. Tee Higgins had 11 catches for 157 yards, the second-highest yardage total of his career, before he also left the game late with a groin injury. Dohnte Meyers had seven receptions for 82 yards and running back Chase Brown caught 11 passes for 71 yards.

Burrow passed for 428 yards and a touchdown. It was the fourth-most passing yards in his career and his eighth 400-yard passing game. He also tossed a pair of interceptions, including one in the red zone.

“I think it changed how they were playing (defensively), obviously, when a guy like Ja’Marr goes out,” Burrow said. “We got a little more man (coverage). But guys came in and really stepped up. Tee, for a good part of the game, balled as well. I can’t say enough about those guys.”

The Bengals managed just 23 yards on the ground, averaging fewer than 2 years per carry against a Jaguars defense that hasn’t allowed a 75-yard rusher in 21 straight games.

Cincinnati didn’t have Higgins on its final drive but still drove to the Jaguars 21-yard line. Brown was tackled 1 yard short on fourth-and-10 with 50 seconds left.

“At the end of the day, they walk down the field in a two-minute drill with neither (Chase or Higgins) out there,” Jaguars coach Liam Coen said. “I’m sure it affected some of their game plan. … I can’t speak for Zac (Taylor), but I would imagine that it was probably a little bit frustrating.”

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