Bengals lose franchise quarterback for the remainder of the season
The Cincinnati Bengals will be without their star quarterback Joe Burrow, after he left Thursday nights game with a torn ligament in his wrist.
He completed 11-of-17 passes for 101 yards and one touchdown before leaving the game and was replaced by backup Jake Browning. “I felt a pop,” Burrow said to reporters on the touchdown throw, he also added that he landed on his wrist the play before. Head coach Zac Taylor said that Browning will remain the starter going forward.
Burrow’s injury is a devastating injury to the 5-5 Bengals. At the start of the season Burrow injured his calf in the preseason, which was followed by a slow start to the regular season. However, ever since the Week 7 bye, it looked that he was finding his way back.
Against the Bills and Texans, Burrow threw for over 340 yards with two touchdowns in each contest. In Week 8 coming off their bye week, he rushed for a season high 40 yards, showing his calf strain was behind him.
Overall, the former LSU Tiger threw for 2,309 yards with 15 touchdowns and six interceptions. His quarterback rating is at 91 percent which was below his 98 percent career average.
There is a current NFL investigation into why Burrow wasn’t listed on the injury report this week, per Dianna Russini of the Atheltic.
“It’s not uncommon for guys to wear compression sleeves on a plane because when you go up to that altitude things can swell up,” Burrow said. “In football you have a lot of bumps and bruises. This is a completely new injury.” While speaking to reporters today Burrow said based on what he knows so far he will likely have to have surgery.
Browning will take over the starting duties and he has the confidence in his head coach.
“This is adversity, It’s not foreign to our team,” Taylor said. “It’s exciting to see guys rally around each other and rally around Jake. I’m excited to see this team respond. I feel energy. It’s tough to see your starting QB who is as good as Joe Burrow go down.”
Follow Matt on Twitter @Bstrong415
For additional Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, MLB and NFL content follow Beyond the Monster on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
