The Minnesota Vikings are hosting the Cincinnati Bengals at U.S. Bank Stadium this Sunday. It’s one of those games everyone expects to come with a little extra juice. But if we’re being real, the energy got dialed up even before kickoff. A couple of days out, Bengals wideout Ja’Marr Chase turned up the heat when he said he’s planning to hit the Griddy right there in his old LSU teammate Justin Jefferson’s house.

“I mean, if he doesn’t want me to, I wanna do it,” Chase said while addressing Jefferson. “If he doesn’t want me to do it then I’m gonna do it now, purposely. I wanna piss him off. Hell yeah. Who knows what I’ll do when I get in the end zone? I might get a fine this week.”

Fast forward to game day, and just minutes before kickoff, Jefferson finally fired back at his old teammate’s little jab.

“We’re gonna see,” Jefferson said when asked about how he feels about Chase’s doing Griddy against the Vikings. “We’re gonna see.”

Chase and Jefferson are going head-to-head for the third time in the NFL, and let’s say if Chase finds the end zone today, it’ll be the second time he’s breaking out the Griddy right in Jefferson’s house.

September 12, 2021: Chase made his NFL debut with the Bengals against the Vikings, racking up 102 receiving yards and a touchdown in a 27-24 win. That TD? It was his first in the pros.

It was his first against his old LSU teammate, and of course, the first time he busted out the Griddy. Jefferson, on the other hand, watched him from the sidelines as the Vikings’ wideout finished the game with 5 receptions for 71 yards.

Fast forward to December 16, 2023: Chase had 4 catches for 64 yards, but no end zone this time, so no Griddy. Now here we are, Chase and Jefferson are facing off for the third time in the NFL. And naturally, the big question is: will Chase find the end zone today? And if he does… are we finally getting another Griddy in Jefferson’s house? That remains to be seen.

Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase don’t talk about competing against each other

Randy Moss knows wide receivers. And ahead of the Vikings vs. Bengals showdown, he interviewed a pair of dynamic receivers: Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson. The two shared a locker room for a couple of years with Joe Burrow during their time at LSU and helped the Tigers win a CFP National Championship.

So when Moss got the chance to ask if they still feel like they’re competing to see who’s better, he grabbed the moment with both hands. In his response, Chase replied that even though it’s true, they don’t like to talk about it. “It’s like yeah but we don’t talk about it, you know what I’m saying?” The Bengals’ wideout said.

“It’s like bro goes out there to do his thing, and you know, it’s like, I’m coming too. To play his best, outstep one another. That’s how it’s always been for us, you know. It’s always gonna be like that.” Heading into Week 3, Chase and Jefferson both are without their starting quarterbacks. While Burrow is out for at least three months due to turf toe, JJ McCarthy has been sidelined due to a high ankle sprain.

In their places, Jake Browning and Carson Wentz stepped in for the Bengals and the Vikings, respectively. That said, it remains to be seen whether Chase manages to do his Griddy in Jefferson’s house with a backup QB lining up under the center.