Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey told reporters on Sunday that Bengals star wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase spit on him during the second half of his team's win over Cincinnati, which led to an ensuing altercation that resulted in Ramsey's ejection.
Chase denied spitting on Ramsey after the game.
"I never opened my mouth to that guy," Chase said, via The Athletic. "I didn't spit on nobody."
Footage of the incident, however, appears to show that Chase did, in fact, spit on Ramsey.
Ramsey and Chase got into a verbal altercation at the beginning of the fourth quarter of Pittsburgh's eventual 34-12 win on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium. The altercation quickly became physical with Ramsey taking a swipe at Chase's helmet and grabbing his facemask before players from both teams separated the two.
Both players drew offsetting unsportsmanlike penalties, and Ramsey was ejected for the final 13 minutes of action.
Referee Bill Vinovich said in the pool report that Ramsey was ejected for punching Ramsey.
When asked about Ramsey's accusation, Vinovich said that the officials did not see Chase spit at Ramsey.
"Obviously, we did not," Vinovich said. "We did not see anything that rose to that level at all."
On Monday, Bengals coach Zac Taylor said he spoke with Chase about the incident.
"I've always been impressed with how Ja'Marr has handled himself because he is in a lot of these situations where he's got a target as a top player," Taylor said. "He gets a lot of respect that way, so guys try to do a lot of things to get his attention and get him off his game. I've always thought it was unbelievable how he's handled in some really high-pressure, emotional decisions.
"Obviously, what happened is crossing the line. We can't have that, and I know he'll own up to that."
Chase declined to speak to reporters on Monday.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported the league will review the incident for potential discipline.
The NFL established precedent for a possible punishment for a spitting incident earlier this season when Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter spit on Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott before the first offensive snap of the 2025 Kickoff Game on Sept. 4.
Carter was ejected from the game before playing one snap. The NFL later announced that Carter had been suspended one game for the incident, however, the league considered that his suspension had already been served due to how early in the contest his ejection occurred.
