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Tempers flared during the Week 11 AFC North clash between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals. Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase exchanged multiple intense confrontations, which peaked in the fourth quarter.
Shortly after the third-down attempt, tension between Ramsey and Chase boiled over, moving from verbal exchange to physical contact as both grabbed each other’s face masks. Both were hit with personal foul penalties and received warnings that a repeat could mean being ejected from the game.
Facing a fourth-and-1 on the next snap, Cincinnati chose to call a timeout rather than run the play. In that moment, Ramsey and Chase had another verbal confrontation. Field-level footage showed that Chase spat at Ramsey, who responded by grabbing his face mask and punching him, a violation that leads to automatic ejection in the NFL.
The altercation required intervention from Pittsburgh defensive tackle Yahya Black and director of player development Darrel Young to prevent further escalation.
Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward criticized Chase’s conduct, per TribLive’s Joe Rutter:
“Two competitors, but one guy took it too far. Our guy got penalized, but if you’re going to spit on a guy, you don’t belong in the game. Hopefully the NFL handles it.”
However, after the game, Chase denied any wrongdoing. The NFL has confirmed it is reviewing the Chase-Ramsey incident, with many fans calling for disciplinary action. A similar precedent occurred in the season-opening matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. Philadelphia defensive tackle Jalen Carter was ejected before the game’s first snap for spitting on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott, and the league treated the ejection as effectively serving a one-game suspension.
Losing their top cornerback didn’t stop Pittsburgh’s defense from shining, keeping Chase and Tee Higgins to six receptions for 93 yards and one touchdown, compared to 22 catches for 257 yards and two touchdowns in their earlier meeting in Week 7.
Steelers safety Kyle Dugger contributed a 73-yard interception return, while cornerback James Pierre recovered a fumble and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown. Kenneth Gainwell, stepping in for an injured Jaylen Warren, added two touchdown receptions, including a 5-yard score late in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Mason Rudolph, replacing an injured Aaron Rodgers, completed 12 of 16 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown, ending the game with a 118.5 passer rating.
The Steelers (6-4) will travel to face the Chicago Bears (7-3) next Sunday.
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