Ja’Marr Chase didn’t have all the answers after the Bengals were stunned at home by the Patriots in their season opener.
Chase caught six balls for 62 yards with no other targets as New England beat Cincinnati 16-10 on Sunday.
After the game, Chase twice deferred questions about the team’s game plan, saying merely, “Ask Zac,” referring to head coach Zac Taylor.
It was the third straight year that the Bengals have lost their season opener, and this one came against a rebuilding Patriots team that many considered among the league’s worst teams.
“We always start like that, I feel like, the first game of the year — we should be better at that by now,” Chase said.
To a follow-up question about what the Bengals need to do differently in their season openers, Chase gave a quick answer about winning the turnover battle.
Chase had been sitting out Bengals practices in the leadup to the season as he has been seeking a new contract.
While a new deal has yet to be announced, Chase felt comfortable suiting up in Week 1 in a hint that the two sides could be close to an extension.
After the game, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow disputed the idea that Chase missing practices adversely affected how the team performed against the Patriots.
“No, I wouldn’t say that’s accurate,” Burrow said, as covered by PFT.
Burrow was 21-for-29 for 164 yards — just 5.7 yards per attempt — and no touchdown passes or interceptions in the loss.
The Bengals were missing wideout Tee Higgins, who works in tandem with Chase to create mismatches for opposing defenses, with a hamstring injury on Sunday.
Things won’t get easier for the Bengals from here, as they head to Kansas City to face the defending champion Chiefs on Sunday afternoon in Week 2.