Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor made an aggressive decision at the end of his team’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night, and Ja’Marr Chase had no problem with the strategy.
The Bengals were trailing 35-28 when Joe Burrow led a 70-yard drive and threw a touchdown pass to Chase with just 38 seconds remaining. Rather than kicking the extra point to tie the game, Taylor opted to go for two. Burrow could not connect on a pass to tight end Tanner Hudson, and Cincinnati went on to lose 35-34.
Taylor told reporters after the game that the Bengals “came here to win.” He clearly felt going for two was the better option than playing for overtime in what was an exhausting shootout on the road.
Chase, who had an incredible 264 yards and 3 touchdowns, agreed wholeheartedly.
“Hell yeah. I agree with it 100 percent,” Chase told reporters, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com.
Burrow also agreed, saying the Bengals “knew what situation we were in.”
With 38 seconds left, there is no guarantee that kicking an extra point would have sent the game to overtime. The Bengals’ defense had been unable to stop Lamar Jackson and company, so Taylor probably figured 38 seconds was plenty of time for Baltimore to get into field-goal range.
Taylor got the meme treatment on social media after his decision did not work out, but he has the support of his star players. That matters a lot more.
