Ja'Marr Chase keeps up Chiefs barbs during, after Bengals loss - ESPN

CINCINNATI — Ja'Marr Chase ensured Sunday that his feud with Kansas City will stay ablaze.

During and after Cincinnati's 25-17 loss to the Chiefs that eliminated the Bengals from playoff contention, Chase continued to deliver barbs aimed at the Kansas City defense.

In the second quarter, Chase was whistled for unnecessary roughness after he and Chiefs cornerback L'Jarius Sneed engaged in a shoving match after a play.

Then after the game, Chase took credit for sparking the battle with Cincinnati's AFC rival.

«I started it off,» Chase said. «Their whole defense was mad at me. It started at the beginning of the game. You've seen it. Everybody's seen it. That's just what I like to do.»

Said Chase of his battle with Sneed: «I just be under people's skin sometimes. Motherf---er won't fight me.»

Chase finished the game with 3 catches for 41 yards. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, he was lined up against Sneed for 61.8% of his routes.

Chase played Sunday after missing one game with a right shoulder injury he suffered in Cincinnati's Week 15 overtime win against Pittsburgh. The Bengals' star receiver was limited in practice throughout the week. But as the team boarded the plane for Kansas City on Saturday, Chase said he told coach Zac Taylor he wanted to play in order to keep Cincinnati's postseason hopes alive.

«Game on the line, season on the line,» Chase said of his decision to play. «Just providing.»

He estimated that he was 70% healthy. Because of his limited capacity, he said he did not have his usual role in the team's weekly game plan.

That changed when wide receiver Tee Higgins suffered a left hamstring injury on his first catch of the game. Higgins said he reaggravated the injury that forced him to miss three games