Ja’Marr Chase has been suspended one game by the NFL for spitting on Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey, and the Cincinnati Bengals star is appealing. The excuse he reportedly has lined up does not sound all that great, however.
Ramsey was ejected from his team’s 34-12 Week 11 win over Cincinnati on Sunday for throwing a punch at Chase during the fourth quarter. After the game, Ramsey revealed that the incident was instigated by Chase spitting at him, which the Bengals wide receiver denied.
Videos quickly surfaced that removed all doubt that Chase spit on Ramsey, which led to the suspension.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Chase essentially plans to argue in his appeal that he was spitting anyway and Ramsey happened to be standing there. Chase might try to convince the appeals officer that he would have spat in Ramsey’s face if he were doing it intentionally.
From @NFLGameDay Kickoff: #Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase was suspended 1 game; The #Falcons may have lost QB Michael Penix for the season; #Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers is dealing with a small fracture in his left hand. pic.twitter.com/D7JfCfNKUJ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 18, 2025
As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk laid out, Chase could also try to make the argument that there is no precedent for suspending a player who spits on an opponent. Earlier this season, Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter was ejected from a game for spitting on Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. Carter was not suspended in that instance, but the NFL said that was only because he spat at Prescott before the first play of the game. The league counted the game Carter was ejected from as a full one-game ban.
Carter also had to forfeit his game check for Week 1. So, while Carter was not technically suspended, the NFL would likely argue that the precedent has been set.
Chase is having another Pro Bowl-caliber season with 79 catches, 861 yards and 5 touchdowns through 10 games. His suspension comes at an inopportune time for the Bengals, who are 3-7 and facing a must-win situation against the New England Patriots in Week 12.