Bengals' Chase has sprained AC joint, day-to-day

CINCINNATI -- Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase is officially "day-to-day" with a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder, coach Zac Taylor said Sunday.

Chase suffered the injury in the team's 27-24 overtime win against the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday. Taylor said the prognosis that Chase will be evaluated on a short-term basis is in line with what was initially expected.

The coach added that it's too early to evaluate Chase's practice availability throughout the week ahead of the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 23.

The Bengals received bad news about two players, including one of their best defenders. Defensive tackle DJ Reader is out for the season with a set of torn quadriceps in his right leg, Taylor said Sunday. Reader tore his left quadriceps in 2020, his first season with the Bengals.

Reader, who is in the final year of his contract, was among the first players Cincinnati signed in free agency to revamp a franchise that finished with the league's worst record in 2019.

Cincinnati rookie cornerback DJ Ivey also suffered a season-ending ACL tear in his right knee, Taylor said Sunday. Ivey, who played some defensive snaps but was mostly used on special teams, suffered the injury while trying to make a tackle on a punt return.

Chase favored his right shoulder after he made a 24-yard catch on third-and-21 to extend a Cincinnati drive during the Bengals' comeback. He came in for two more snaps but was unable to finish the game.

"It was tough," Taylor said. "There was not much he could do. And you could tell him coming off the field after one of Tee [Higgins'] touchdowns, there was no way he was going to be able to play with that for the rest of the day."

Chase finished the game with four catches for a team-high 64 yards. Cincinnati (8-6) erased a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime and eventually win its third straight game.

On the season, Chase has 93 receptions for 1,156 yards and seven touchdowns. With three games left in the regular season, Chase is 19 catches shy of tying T.J. Houshmandzadeh's team record of 112, which was set in 2007.

Including Saturday, Reader has appeared in 44 games with the Bengals. Taylor said he has been critical to the team's turnaround, which includes a Super Bowl appearance and back-to-back AFC North championships.

"Every step of the way, he's represented everything that we talk about in the locker room, everything we talk about on the field, everything we talk about at practice, the way you conduct yourself," Taylor said. "He's represented everything. That's why he's elected captain. He's earned all of that, and he's been invaluable in his time here."