The Cincinnati Bengals can count on their quarterback Joe Burrow again. Despite a 3-8 record, sitting out the season was never an option for him.

The Cincinnati Bengals are facing a difficult phase of the season with a 3-8 record. According to various metrics, their chances of making the playoffs are now only one percent. Nevertheless, quarterback Joe Burrow is planning his return for the Thanksgiving game against the Baltimore Ravens – and he has clear words to say about his role.

Joe Burrow: “I would never go up to someone and say…”

Burrow, who has missed nine games due to a toe injury, emphasized that he will not voluntarily sit on the bench as long as he is healthy – even if the playoffs are out of reach.

“I would never go to anyone and say, ‘Yeah, I’m healthy, but I don’t think I should go out there and play,’” the 27-year-old explained. He added: “I’m not going to live my life and play this game fearfully, afraid that something will happen.” In four of the past six NFL seasons, Burrow has struggled with serious injuries, including a torn tendon in his right wrist that cost him the last seven games in 2023. Nevertheless, he emphasized his hard work in rehabilitation: “I worked really hard to make sure that didn’t happen… And I did.”

Coach Zac Taylor rested Burrow as a precaution in the recent game against the New England Patriots to avoid overloading him with two games in five days. Burrow described this decision as “good.”

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The QB sees clear requirements for the remaining six games: “We probably need to win all six,” he said, recalling last season when the Bengals won their last five games but still missed the playoffs with a 9-8 record.

Burrow also defended his coach in the face of criticism for missing the playoffs for the third consecutive time after two AFC North titles and a Super Bowl appearance in 2021: “There is no scheme in the NFL that is that revolutionary. The coaches work really hard. At the end of the day, the players have to take responsibility and play well within the system.“

The matchup against the Ravens, an intense AFC North rivalry, promises to be exciting. Burrow: ”You don’t like them. It’s a division rivalry. You respect them, but it’s intense out there.”