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Whereas Christmas was simply over a month in the past, Cincinnati Bengals operating again Chase Brown has delivered a late present to Bengals followers within the type of a message concerning quarterback Joe Burrow and his future with the franchise.
A few of Burrow’s feedback close to the tip of the common season has led to hypothesis about his need to stay in Cincinnati, who’s coming off a 3rd consecutive non-playoff season. Burrow is signed by means of the 2029 season, however that hasn’t stopped unfounded rumblings about whether or not or not he’ll search a commerce and even retire earlier than his contract expires.
Brown, nonetheless, has made it clear that Bengals followers don’t have anything to fret about.
“Joe’s not going wherever,” Brown advised CBS Sports activities. “I believe that was completely blown out of proportion. It was positively speaking level for folks. … It gave the media loads to speak about and doubtless made [Burrow’s] Twitter notifications go off, however Joe’s not going wherever.”
“You heard it from my wing man proper there,” added Bengals wideout Tee Higgins.
Talking of wing man, Higgins and Brown are a part of Bounty‘s Wingman program within the run as much as the Tremendous Bowl, a recreation that Higgins, Burrow and the remainder of the Bengals practically gained 4 years in the past.
Towards the Rams in Tremendous Bowl LVI, Higgins caught a pair of landing passes that included a 75-yard rating on a throw from Burrow that gave the Bengals a second half lead. Cincinnati finally got here up quick within the recreation, nonetheless, earlier than dropping one other shut recreation to the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs within the following yr’s AFC title recreation.
Accidents to Burrow have largely contributed to the Bengals’ latest struggles. He missed the ultimate seven video games of the 2023 season after struggling a wrist harm that required surgical procedure. This previous season, Burrow missed 9 video games after injuring his toe in Week 2. The Bengals, who had been 2-0 on the time of Burrow’s harm, went simply 1-8 throughout his absence.
Burrow returned to the lineup in Week 13 and led Cincinnati to an upset win over Baltimore that stored their flickering playoff hopes alive. That hope was rapidly extinguished, nonetheless, after the Bengals misplaced their subsequent two video games that included a 24-0 loss to the Ravens in what was arguably the worst recreation of Burrow’s profession.
Whereas their playoff hopes had been dashed, Cincinnati nonetheless put collectively two of their most spectacular performances of the season in wins over the Dolphins and Cardinals. And whereas their season ended with a loss to the Browns, the Bengals had been nonetheless a significantly better group upon Burrow’s return, particularly on offense.
“We picked up some momentum on the finish of the season that we are able to carry into this coming season,” stated Brown, who rushed for a career-high 1,019 yards this season. “There’s loads that we went by means of this yr. We misplaced our quarterback. We had a number of totally different quarterbacks, and that is onerous on everyone on offense and positively onerous on receivers.
“Whenever you have a look at the season as a complete, we went by means of loads. So I stay up for having a full season with everyone. Not that that is promised, however that is what I stay up for.”
Including insult to harm was the truth that the AFC North — a division that had all 4 groups end with a profitable file in 2023 — had a particularly down yr. The Steelers (the one group the Bengals defeated throughout Burrow’s absence) had been the one group to publish a profitable file. Had Burrow stayed wholesome, it is fairly doable that the Bengals would have gained the North going away.
“I believe the primary factor is we all the time need to be in charge of our playoff hopes,” Brown stated. “The place that we had been in, we did not have any management the final a part of the season, so there have been lots of issues that needed to occur to go our approach. It’s onerous to see it play out that approach, although, as a result of we all know what we might have been able to if we had made it into the playoffs.”
Along with having Burrow and one of many NFL’s greatest group of talent gamers, the Bengals even have the division’s longest-tenured head coach in Zac Taylor, who was given a public vote of confidence from group proprietor Mike Brown this offseason.
Will that stability give the Bengals an edge this season?
“I do not know if it may give us one,” Higgins stated, “however I hope so.”
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