Referee Alex Kemp: Ja’Marr Chase was “clearly” abusive to an official

Early in the fourth quarter of Cincinnati’s loss to Kansas City, Bengals receiver Ja’Marr Chase was cautioned for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Chase was visibly upset after cornerback Trent McDuffie tackled him for 4 yards and voiced his displeasure to the referees, which resulted in a 15-yard penalty being assessed against him. Although quarterback Joe Burrow attempted to stop Chase and pull him back into the huddle, Chase continued running – and was subsequently penalized.

During the CBS broadcast, sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson said Chase was upset because he felt McDuffie used the now-illegal hip-drop tackle to bring him down. However, it was also clear from every replay that McDuffie did not drop his hip to tackle Chase.

Chase was asked about the penalty after the game by Paul Dehner Jr. of TheAthletic.com and declined to commentHowever, ESPN billiards reporter Ben Baby spoke to referee Alex Kemp about the interaction and he confirmed that Chase was upset about the tackle and received a penalty for his comments.

“It’s pretty clear. It’s just insulting a referee,” Kemp said. “That’s all it was. And there was really no interpretation. I’m not going to repeat to you what he said, but there was no interpretation of the language he used – just insulting.”

Kemp noted that there is a difference between a player using foul language and a player using language that constitutes a foul.

“The simple answer is: adult male profanity versus direct, personal abuse of a referee. That’s the line,” Kemp said. “When that line is crossed, we simply cannot allow it in professional football.”

Kemp noted that Chase questioned the tackle early in the interaction. When asked if he thought the call was appropriate and if that was the referees’ explanation for Chase, Kemp said, “We communicated to him that we did not believe it was a hip-drop tackle.”

The penalty was significant because it allowed Cincinnati a third down attempt on 22-and-24 instead of 7-and-7. Although Evan McPherson sank his 53-yard field goal attempt, the Bengals were only ahead by two points.

Kansas City’s Harrison Butker kicked a 51-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Chiefs a 26-25 victory.