“He Was Lying”: Stephen A. Smith Gives 2 Reasons for Ja’Marr Chase to Get Suspended for 2 Games

Aaron Rodgers left the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 34-12 win over the Cincinnati Bengals with a small fracture in his wrist. But somehow, he is far from the biggest story coming out of that game. Instead, we have another “spit-gate” on our hands after an altercation between Ja’Marr Chase and Jalen Ramsey.

Actually, there were a few altercations between those long-time enemies. They both received offsetting unsportsmanlike conduct penalties earlier in Sunday’s game. Then, a few moments later, they were at it again. Ramsey punched Chase and grabbed his facemask, which resulted in a Bengals first down and him being penalized and ejected.

But after the game, Ramsey claimed that he reacted that way because Chase spit on him. When high-quality sideline video evidence was released, the Steelers DB was squarely vindicated.

It doesn’t get more clear and obvious than that. And yet, Chase, who must know that the NFL has cameras everywhere that catch everything, denied doing it after the game, saying, “I didn’t spit on nobody.”

Because Chase not only spit on an opposing player (which results in a one-game ban based on the Jalen Carter precedent from earlier this year), but also told a “bold-faced lie” about it, pundit Stephen A. Smith thinks the suspension should be doubled.

“It should be an automatic two-game suspension. Automatic,” Stephen A. said on Get Up.

“One is for the spitting. Another is for telling a bold-faced lie. Because he was lying. It’s clear as day. I saw the interview with Ja’Marr Chase talking to reporters before I saw a replay of the actual incident itself. To sit up there with a straight face, ‘I ain’t open my mouth, I ain’t do nothing.’ (Laughs) Evidently, he doesn’t understand living in the modern age, where cameras are everywhere,” added the analyst.

It’s honestly mind-boggling that some of the guys like Chase still think they can get away with that kind of stuff when every square inch of an NFL field is covered by 14 different cameras.

Chase’s spitting was bad enough, but then for it to be proved decisively that he lied about it? We would also agree that it deserves double the suspension. Smith continued:

“You’re damn right he spit on Jalen Ramsey. He spit right at ’em! And it was thick too, you could see it! (Laughs) … I’m a Ja’Marr Chase fan.. but you don’t spit on anybody. … I mean, come on man. The NFL has to send a message,” Stephen A. said, adding,

“You talk about a situation where it’s going to be very difficult to control … these are the kinds of things you put a stop to before they even start. You don’t do that. You have to send that kind of message. I believe it warrants a two-game suspension.”

In Week 1, Eagles All-Pro defensive tackle Jalen Carter was suspended a game for spitting on an opponent, so logical precedence suggests Chase should get at least one game.

There was some optimism recently in Cincy with Joe Flacco reviving the offense and Joe Burrow apparently close to returning to practice. But after losing this Week 11 contest handily, scoring just 12 points, and likely losing Chase for at least one game if not two, the feeling in southwestern Ohio likely hasn’t been this low since Burrow went down back in September.

It will be extremely interesting to see how Chase tries to spin “spit-gate” and the ensuing lie he told in the locker room. We’ve got our money on, “That was an AI deep fake video,” but who knows what else he will come up with.