During the Cincinnati Bengals’ Week 2 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Joe Burrow suffered a turf toe injury that put the Bengals’ season in jeopardy.
Now, with their best player sidelined, the team has lost both games that Jake Browning started in Burrow’s place. Bengals fans can’t wait for Burrow to return under center, but what’s the latest on the superstar quarterback?
How Long Will Joe Burrow Be Out?
Burrow went down in the backfield while facing off against a solid Jaguars defensive line and grabbed his left foot and ankle. The injury was so bad that he had to be helped back to the locker room. He was later spotted riding a scooter so that he didn’t put any weight on his foot.
The Bengals quarterback was officially diagnosed with turf toe. After the game, Burrow was seen in the locker room “with a boot on his left foot and crutches.”
The next day, ESPN’s NFL insider Adam Schefter revealed that Burrow’s toe required surgery and that he was expected to miss “a minimum of three months.”
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor confirmed that Burrow will have surgery, and the team placed the star quarterback on injured reserve on Sept. 16.
This season, Browning has struggled mightily in Burrow’s absence, throwing for 506 yards, three touchdowns, and five interceptions with a 64.3% completion percentage. Browning’s struggles have ignited rumors that the Bengals could try to trade for a quarterback at some point in order to stay afloat while Burrow recovers.
Burrow’s Fantasy Outlook
We spent all offseason wondering aloud if Burrow was the top quarterback in the second tier or if his elite passing numbers were enough to put him in the class of the athletic marvels at the position.
They were fun conversations to have, but they don’t matter now. Burrow (turf toe) is going to be out until December at the very least, and that means he’s going to be cut loose in all leagues that don’t have enough IR room for him. And even then, we aren’t sure the Bengals will be in a position to compete when Burrow returns to the practice field.
I want to use this brutal injury as a launching point. Football is as physically taxing a team sport as there is. That’s obviously more true for some positions than others, but it’s a gladiator sport where everyone on the field isn’t far from a significant injury.
The four quarterbacks drafted ahead of Burrow this summer are much more athletic, and their ability to run often gets tied to an increase in injury risk. I understand the train of thought: they invite contact when they are on the move.
That’s accurate.
But what doesn’t get looked at enough is the other side of the coin: that quarterback is also capable of escaping trouble spots at a higher rate than average. No one is catching Jayden Daniels from behind, so while he is at risk of taking punishment, it’s usually coming head-on, and in those spots, he has the opportunity to make a business decision.
I’m not arguing that Burrow is more likely to get hurt than the Josh Allens of the world, though it is worth noting that he missed six games in 2020 and seven more in 2023. I’m arguing against the assumption that athletic quarterbacks are reckless investments.
Are they risky? Yes. Because they play football. Allen’s propensity to take hits is worrisome to the eye, but he’s been huge and taking hits his entire life. There’s something to be said for knowing how to do it, and that’s a big reason why I’ll never shy away from that prototype.
As for the Bengals and Browning, Week 3 felt like rock bottom until Week 4 happened. Browning is struggling to execute much of anything right now, so much so that Ja’Marr Chase is hardly running down the field. They are opting to keep their WR1 (and maybe the best pass catcher in the league) close to the line of scrimmage because if his route extended too far, the play is at serious risk of being over before he turns his head to look for a target.
If the Bengals opt to trade for a quarterback, that player will have my attention due to the talent on this roster, but Browning has proven incapable of leveraging his teammates and that means he’s not even worth a look in two QB leagues, even with four teams on a bye.
That’s hard to do.
