Bengals fans, you can officially exhale, because Joe Burrow is back.
After missing more than a month due to a calf injury, the Bengals quarterback finally returned to practice on Wednesday. Everyone in Cincinnati had been holding their breath since July 27 when Burrow went down due to a non-contact injury.
Over the past few weeks, Bengals coach Zac Taylor had been evasive about Burrow's status. As recently as Tuesday, Taylor wouldn't even confirm whether Burrow was going to practice this week.
"We'll see," Taylor said, via ESPN.
Of course, Taylor won't have to be evasive anymore, because Burrow walked out to the practice field on Wednesday while showing no signs of the injury that plagued him for the past month.
Hey @JoeyB 👋 pic.twitter.com/pJcn3tfkQg
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) August 30, 2023
Although Taylor was hesitant to give any major updates on Burrow's injury, he did seem confident that his star quarterback would be back in the fold for Week 1. For one, the Bengals cut two quarterbacks on Tuesday, which left them with just two on the roster (Burrow and Jake Browning).
"I think he has a very healthy body," Taylor said when asked about Burrow's injury on Tuesday. "And I'm encouraged by that."
The return of Burrow also shuts down another rumor. While he was out, there was some speculation that Burrow might not want to return to the field until he got a long-term contract done, but that's definitely not the case. The contract still isn't done, but Burrow was out there.
If the Bengals are going to get a contract done with Burrow before the season starts, though, they're running out of time to do it. Burrow is in line to become the highest-paid player in NFL history and he'll almost certainly be getting a contract that tops Justin Herbert's recent deal, which will pay the Chargers QB an average of $52.5 million per year.
After leading the Bengals to two straight AFC title games and a Super Bowl appearance, Burrow is certainly worth that, and now, with their star quarterback making his return to the field, everyone in Cincinnati will be feeling a lot better about the Bengals chances of making it to a third straight AFC title game and possibly another Super Bowl.
