The Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals will meet this Sunday in a rematch of last year's AFC Championship game. The war of words has already begun between safety Justin Reid and wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase.
The two players had a Twitter spat on Wednesday stemming from comments made by Reid about shutting down the Bengals' pass-catchers this week.
Asked #Chiefs safety Justin Reid about what he would've done differently against Cincinnati if he played with KC last year.
— PJ Green (@PJGreenTV) November 30, 2022
His words show just how motivated the team is about beating the #Bengals.
His words about Tee Higgins: "I'm gonna lock him down." pic.twitter.com/9W5Khndh1J
The entire altercation occurred over Reid's comments to PJ Green of Fox 4 earlier in the day about Chase's teammate, Tee Higgins, when he said, "I'm gonna lock him down."
Later, Reid clarified his statement on Twitter, saying he wasn't talking about Higgins specifically and that he meant to say Bengals' tight end Hayden Hurst, who he briefly confused with Los Angeles Rams tight end Tyler Higbee. That didn't stop Reid from doubling down, tweeting, "Nonetheless, any and everybody still getting locked up." Chase, likely feeling disrespected by Reid's comments, decided to chime in to defend his teammate's honor.
Chase took to Twitter, urging Reid to let his money do the talking. Reid balked at the wager and told Chase he was "welcome for the extra motivation" before ending his response ominously with, "see you Sunday champ."
Reid may want to rethink his smack talk, as his numbers don't reflect a player ready to shut down a stacked Bengals' offense. In 11 starts for the Chiefs this season, Reid is allowing career-highs in completion percentage (73.0) and passer rating (125.6). The 25-year-old has given up 317 yards on 27 catches allowed, recording 52 tackles with two pass defenses.
Reid wasn't on the Chiefs last season, so Sunday will be his first taste of the Chiefs/Bengals rivalry. Last offseason, Reid signed with Kansas City as a free agent after spending the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Houston Texans.
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