The Cincinnati Bengals have a set return date in mind for star wideout Ja’Marr Chase.
Chase avoided injured reserve but remains on crutches as of early this week. The projected timeline was never a return for this weekend against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the plan is to hope Chase can suit up against the Tennessee Titans in Week 12:
“The Bengals are hopeful Ja’Marr Chase, who has been recovering from a hip injury, can return for Week 12 against the Tennessee Titans. Chase continues to rehab, so there’s no definitive plan there yet, but the people I’ve talked to have circled that game as a potential relaunch for Chase. The Bengals’ offense is feeling pretty good after posting 42 points and 464 yards on Carolina two weeks ago, and fresh off the bye, the Bengals are hoping for similar production vs. Pittsburgh this week.”
As we’ve detailed since the injury, this is exactly why the Bengals didn’t throw Chase on injured reserve. If he went to I.R., he wouldn’t be eligible to play against the Titans at all (the bye week wouldn’t have counted toward his re-activation, as rules specify players must miss “game weeks”).
So while it might seem odd that Chase was on crutches early this week but could play next week, it would fall right in line with the expected timeline.
It is important for fans to recall, though, that the initial timeline called for 4-6 weeks. If it’s six weeks, he’s looking at potentially missing the game against the Titans and potentially the week after against the Chiefs.
But as of mid-week in Week 11, the plan sounds like a Week 12 return.
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