Patriots WR Efton Chism shows his true colors in response to controversial comments from Bills safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson
A one-handed grab sparked a minute-long tirade from a Bills safety, and the receiver on the other end of it had a very different way of answering the noise.
New England Patriots fans won’t forget the play wide receiver Efton Chism made Sunday against the Buffalo Bills anytime soon. His one-handed grab down the sideline essentially won the game for the Patriots, and just about everyone watching lost their minds.
Well, everyone except Bills safety CJ Gardner-Johnson.
Gardner-Johnson went on a nearly minute-long rant after the game and called out Chism. He labeled him a practice squad player who happened to make a big play. The problem is that Chism has never been on a practice squad. Gardner-Johnson has.
CJ Gardner-Johnson’s rant backfired on the Bills
Unsurprisingly, the clip went mega viral. The truth is, it looked bad for Gardner-Johnson and for Buffalo as a whole. After what was a good win from New England, the Bills came across as salty and upset rather than focused on what went wrong.
To be fair to Gardner-Johnson, this is who he has always been. If you have followed his NFL career, you know he is a player who loves to talk and wears his emotions on his sleeve. He is going to let people know exactly how he feels, whether the moment calls for it or not.
In this case, though, the facts weren’t on his side. Taking a shot at a player’s résumé only works when the shot is accurate. Calling Chism a practice squad player when Gardner-Johnson is the one with practice squad experience turned a heated postgame moment into a punchline.
Efton Chism takes the high road
So the immediate question became how Chism would respond. He had every reason to fire back and plenty of ammunition to do it with.
Instead, he kept it short when reporters asked him about Gardner-Johnson’s comments:
“He’s a great player, they’re a great team, I got a bunch of respect for him. But we’re excited for this weekend.”
That’s it. No jabs, no reminders about who has actually spent time on a practice squad, and no attempt to keep the back-and-forth going. In my opinion, that is the right call, and it isn’t a surprise to see a Patriots player handle it that way. Chisholm let the catch do the talking on Sunday, and he let his response do the same.
There is no question that his answer reflects well on the Patriots locker room. On top of that, it shows a level of maturity that makes the original rant look even worse by comparison.
More juice for the next Patriots-Bills matchup
Chism’s response puts a bow on this particular chapter, but the rivalry between these two teams has been contentious for years. Nothing about this exchange is going to cool that off.
New England and Buffalo will meet again this season, and that game is already shaping up to be a big one. Now it comes with a storyline attached. Gardner-Johnson will surely have something to prove, and Chism will have the chance to remind him of that one-handed grab.
For the time being, this was a funny scenario all the way around. One player talked, the other didn’t, and the internet did the rest.
The way I see it, Chism came out on top twice: once on the field and once at the podium. And it all adds a little more juice for the next time these two teams go at it.
