Memorandum
- From
- Derek Weston
- Date
- Filed
- Sports·4 min to read
- Re
What Ja’Marr Chase’s knee scare means for the Bengals before Week 1
ReWhat Ja’Marr Chase’s knee scare means for the Bengals before Week 1
Chase’s minor hyperextension appears unlikely to threaten the opener, giving Cincinnati a clear incentive to prioritize recovery over late-preseason repetitions.
Ja’Marr Chase’s awkward landing at Bengals practice looked alarming in the moment. The more important part of the story came afterward: he stayed on the field, walked under his own power and said the knee problem was only a minor hyperextension.
For Cincinnati, that turns a potential crisis into a workload-management question with the regular season still more than two weeks away.
The play happened Tuesday, Aug. 25, during a deep route against cornerback DJ Turner II. Chase reached back for the pass and landed awkwardly on his left knee. Turner helped him limp away from the rep, and the Bengals’ medical staff ended Chase’s practice for the day.
Chase later said he felt fine and believed he could have gone back into the session. He went further, saying he would have played if Cincinnati had a game the next day. That does not guarantee how the knee will respond after swelling, treatment and another round of football movement, but it is a substantially better starting point than the initial video suggested.
The timing gives the Bengals flexibility. Cincinnati closes the preseason at Philadelphia on Friday, Aug. 28, then has until Sunday, Sept. 13, before opening the regular season at home against Tampa Bay. There is little competitive value in testing Chase’s knee aggressively in the final days of August if rest can accomplish the same goal with less risk.
That is especially true because Chase is not a player Cincinnati needs to evaluate. His place in the offense is fixed. In 2025 he caught 125 passes for 1,412 yards and eight touchdowns in 16 games, according to NFL statistics. He has topped 1,000 receiving yards in every season since entering the league in 2021.
The Bengals’ concern is therefore not whether Chase can be ready for a role. It is whether he can be fully himself when the games begin — accelerating off the line, separating at the top of routes, absorbing contact and changing direction without compensating for the knee.
The episode also illustrates the risk built into late training camp. The rep itself was ordinary football: Chase racing downfield, Turner in coverage, a contested play on the ball. The landing was the unpredictable part. Cincinnati’s own camp report said Chase quickly tried to get back into practice, but the medical staff held him out.
That was the logical decision. A receiver’s confidence immediately after an injury is useful information, but it should not determine the next practice plan by itself. Even a mild hyperextension can produce soreness, and the Bengals have enough time to let the knee settle before asking Chase for another full-speed session.
The clearest way to read the next few days is through function rather than labels. If Chase is walking normally, participating in individual work and eventually returning to cutting and team drills without discomfort, the concern will continue to fade. If Cincinnati keeps him out longer than expected or he struggles with movement, the situation would deserve a fresh look.
For now, there is no public indication that the Bengals are facing that second scenario. Chase’s own account was optimistic, and the regular-season calendar gives the club a buffer.
That buffer is valuable because Cincinnati’s passing game is at its best when defenses have to account for Chase on every snap. His production creates space for the rest of the offense, and Burrow’s willingness to target him in tight coverage can reshape games even when Chase is not putting up a huge stat line.
So the practical takeaway is simple: the Bengals do not need Chase to prove anything in the preseason. They need him healthy for Tampa Bay. After Tuesday’s scare, the most productive thing he may do for the offense is spend a few days doing less.
