Ja’Marr Chase’s wild touchdown celebration in the third quarter of the Cincinnati Bengals’ game on Sunday at the Los Angeles Chargers left NFL fans wondering the same thing why did he wipe the ball?
It all went down at Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium, with the Bengals trying to narrow a 6-27 score that the Chargers widened at the start of the third, thanks to Cameron Dicker’s 53-yard field goal.
When Joe Burrow’s four-yard dart found Chase, the in-form wide receiver placed the ball on the floor and, while on one knee, reached behind to grab what appeared to be his towel, and proceeded to wipe the ball from back to front.
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“I like it,” one fan said on X. “He must have kids.” One fan said it was the “craziest” thing they’d seen this year, while another said Chase had “the wildest celebration.”
Others suggested it was an homage to Steve Smith Sr., a wide receiver who played for Carolina Panthers from 2001 and 2013, and wiped the ball down during a game in 2005, burped it, and put it down for a nap. Smith later played for the Baltimore Ravens from 2014 to 2016.
Chase has been in remarkable form this season as, heading into Sunday’s showdown, he was leading NFL statistics when it came to yards (981) and touchdowns (10). Though the Bengals lost to the Chargers, he added to his TD haul in the third quarter with the baby wipe celebration, and then again in the fourth quarter when he caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Burrow to bring his season’s tally to 12.
Los Angeles went on to win the game 34-27, despite a Cincinnati comeback. The Bengals have a chance to bounce back when they welcome the Pittsburgh Steelers to Cincinnati on Sunday, December 1.
Touchdown celebrations have meanwhile been notable this season, and especially Sunday, as Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers caught a 23-yard pass from Gardner Minshew during its game at Miami Dolphins. Bowers then mimicked Donald Trump’s iconic dance while still at the end zone, later said it was “cool,” and an homage not only to the president elect, but also UFC superstar Jon Jones.
The UFC heavyweight champion Jones finished the division’s former ruler Stipe Miocic in the third round of a Saturday fight that he was dominant in. When he was on the mic delivering his post-fight victory speech, he performed the Trump dance for the 78-year-old who was sitting cageside at the time.
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