I suppose it’s a sign of dark progress that I slept well on Monday night. You see, after Joe Burrow’s season-ending knee injury back in 2020 I didn’t sleep for a week. When he was lost midway through the 2023 campaign, it took three or four days before I caught any Z’s.
Now, with Joey Franchise effectively lost for the entire season once again with a turf toe/ligament tear that requires surgery, I guess I’m inured enough that I lost just a single night’s shuteye. By Monday evening I was snoozing away with my white noise in the background, spending eight solid hours not thinking about how yet another season of Burrow’s prime is lost.
By now you’ve gone through all the emotions after Sunday’s devastating, if exciting and oddly reassuring, 31-27 win over Jacksonville. The Bengals are now 2-0, and in any other circumstance we’d be crowing over at last putting the “Cincinnati can’t win early-season games” narrative to bed, not to mention another “good when they absolutely had to be” performance by the defense. An interception in the end zone, a pair of fourth-quarter stands to prevent touchdowns, and a putaway sack by Trey Hendrickson? That’s all anyone wanted to realistically see from Al Golden’s unit this season. Ordinarily, it should be enough to put the Bengals in position for a playoff run.
But Burrow is gone again.
The easy, lazy thing to do is “blame the Bengals!” which is of course what everyone has spent the last few days doing. Is the offensive line great? Of course not. Is the guy directly responsible for the defender who wound up sending Burrow to the IR, Dalton Risner, a just-signed journeyman who could have at least been brought in months ago and not be catching up with every snap? You bet. Has Burrow ever played behind an elite front five? Not even close.
But I nevertheless reject the notion the organization caused this injury. Truly bad offensive line play prevents anything from happening. The Bengals, let’s recall, have an explosive attack! The same line that allegedly broke Burrow Sunday seemed OK while the team was scoring 31 points and protected the backup, Jake Browning, enough to drive the length of the field and score the game-winning TD with a Drew Brees-like jump over the top. The Bengals are paying big money to a left tackle, the right tackle is a first-round pick, the center just got extended again, and one guard, Dylan Fairchild, while a rookie, has played quite well in his first starts. Remember, Risner is playing only because of injury to the presumed starter, Lucas Patrick. That is NFL 101: Attack the backup. Sometimes he holds up, sometimes he doesn’t. It’s hardly an institutional failure, or no more so than the 20-plus other teams that consistently struggle with line play.
I agree more with the notion that Burrow’s style, which eschews giving up on plays while hanging in the pocket and prizes shotgun looks and empty sets uber alles, is part of the reason he’s been under siege. Defenses don’t respect the run due to the Bengals lack of commitment and success with it, and that allows them to play all out against the pass. Any offensive line will struggle to protect every single play, and as Cincinnati throws the ball more than other teams in virtually every situation, the volume puts Burrow at risk. Of course, when they do run and the chains don’t move, everyone yells, “You have Burrow, throw the ball!” Moving forward, the key will be better protection not merely through personnel but through scheme, while protecting Burrow from himself.
Mostly, though, I blame the fates. While it’s simple to point fingers and no one in the media gets paid to merely shrug, the overwhelming truth is Burrow’s injuries are mostly just bad luck.
First of all, this is the NFL. Guys break all the time. Burrow is just one of multiple starting QBs who are hurt, and there will be more, I promise. Every season you have to learn new medical terminology to understand the damage the game inflicts upon those who risk maiming for our unquenchable entertainment. Along with turf toe, we’ve had to learn about Lisfranc injuries and Jones fractures—and that’s just the foot. Super Bowl contention and victory generally comes down to the team that best survives the war of attrition.
The sad truth is that some guys break in weird ways and more frequently than others. There is no other way to say it, alas, but Burrow is injury-prone. That’s not, contrary to the way it’s usually phrased, an indictment of his toughness.
But when other guys break a fall with their hand, nothing happens. When Burrow does it, he pops a tendon in his wrist that requires nearly unprecedented surgical repair. Other guys miss a few games with turf toe. When Burrow gets it, he goes under the knife, a rarity. He also suffered a 10-week calf injury from a non-contact rollout in training camp, needed an emergency appendectomy the previous summer, busted his pinky up while throwing a pass, played through a twisted knee in the Super Bowl, and on and on. Remember when Burrow was sent to the hospital and was put on “voice rest” after getting chopped in the larynx?
And yet I remain the cockeyed optimist from (checks notes) two weeks ago. All is not lost. The Bengals are indeed 2-0 for the first time under Zac Taylor. Since the advent of the 14-team playoff, teams that start 2-0 have reached the postseason 79 percent of the time (33 out of 42 teams). In case you haven’t checked the standings, Cincinnati is all alone in first place in the AFC North, which hasn’t been the case since they won the division in 2022. That isn’t likely to last, but better to try and maintain your position of strength than play catch-up all season.
Secondly, the Browning Rifle! It’s was swiftly forgotten after last season’s fireworks, but there were whispers back in 2023, when Browning last filled in, that maybe the offense is more well-rounded and less-reliant on Burrow Magic with Jake the Snake in there. He was 4-3 as a starter that season, with two losses to Pittsburgh and one to eventual champs Kansas City.
Browning isn’t the usual backup QB, chained to a playbook that’s had the last 50 pages torn out, nothing remaining but bubble screens and quick outs. The “Other JB” plays like he has “YOLO” tattooed across the knuckles of one hand and “DGAF” across the knuckles of his other one. The cost/benefit ratio of this style was seen on Sunday: Three crazy town interceptions but also a couple of touchdown passes where he chucked it up for his elite receivers (and yes, I’m including Mitchell Tinsley!) to go get. Considering the strengths of the Bengals roster, that isn’t a terrible approach. And in the dying minutes of tight games, Browning’s Maverick might just be preferable to Burrow’s Iceman.
This will be a sterner, longer test for Browning, but already there are games that once appeared fearsome that now aren’t so much, starting with Sunday’s tilt in Minnesota. CBS apparently believes the Bengals still have a shot, if their broadcast booth is any indication. Jim Nantz and Tony Romo will be on hand as scheduled. FWIW, Nantz has not called a Vikings win since Romo was still on the Cowboys, and the Vikes have lost their last seven games played in front of Nantz by a combined score of 189-98.
CBS is no doubt hoping for history to repeat. In December 2023, these two teams met in a standalone Saturday afternoon game (on NFL Network) played under similar circumstances: Browning started for the Bengals, while backup Nick Mullens got the nod for Minny (and of course threw for over 300 yards on the Bengals). The result was an instant classic, destined to be recalled (in my mind anyway) as the “Tee Higgins Is an Octopus” game for the incredible catch and whiparound stretch he made late to tie a contest Cincinnati won in OT.
And remember: Jake Browning hates the Vikings.
The Vikes will be without starter J.J. McCarthy, who is—sound familiar?—injured again. Carson Wentz will be the QB, somewhat ironically given that once upon a time, when he was actually good, Wentz’s injury led to a Philly Special magic carpet ride led by backup Nick Foles. Cincinnati is an underdog for a reason, but perhaps Browning can repeat his 2023 success and go roughly .500 while under center. For argument’s sake, if he goes 7-7 over the next 14 games, the Bengals would be 9-7 and on the cusp of the playoffs.
That could lead to the ultimate drama: The return of Joe Burrow in the last week of the season, ready to lead the Bengals to the postseason and on a glorious playoff run that allows him to win the first-ever Same-Season Comeback Player of the Year Award!
Hey, I can dream, right? After all, I’m sleeping OK these days. How about you?
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