It is not uncommon for well-known athletes to become significant distractions after suffering terrible injuries. The Cincinnati Bengals, who have seen their chances of making the playoffs rapidly diminish with a 5-6 record for the season, have obviously struggled to establish any kind of offensive rhythm on the field since the injury to their star quarterback. Experienced leadership is crucial when a team in any sport goes through a difficult period.
After suffering a devastating ligament tear in his right wrist, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has demonstrated his ability to contribute to the team off the field during his limitless free time. In an effort to better understand how NFL defenses will try to stop him in the future, Joe Burrow has started going to the Bengals’ defensive meetings.
It’s safe to say that many in the Bengals organization were taken aback when a superstar quarterback—who just happened to become the highest paid player in the NFL with an astounding 55 million dollars a year—started showing up to defensive meetings on his own volition. This included defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, who made an appearance on Up & Adams yesterday.
“I find it hilarious that you pose that query. His obsession with football is so strong that he attends defensive meetings to observe and learn from the proceedings. He attended our defense department’s third down install meeting this morning. He’s conversing with the athletes. Without a doubt, he is unique.
In addition to commenting extensively about the star quarterback attending a defensive meeting, Anarumo expressed admiration for Burrow’s grasp of the game.
“I posed a query to him. He gave a really good response today. He said, “Hey, I would do this against that,” in a really meaningful way. And I had no higher expectations from him. He performed admirably this morning.
This week, the Bengals will face the superior Jacksonville Jaguars defense, and they will be sorely missing their elite signal caller. Burrow has been aiding in the preparation of Jake Browning, the backup quarterback, and it is obvious that Burrow will continue to assist the defense in its preparation.
Cincinnati is undoubtedly in a “win now” mindset given the approaching offseason. Starting with the 2024 NFL season, Burrow is anticipated to return to Cincinnati, and the team’s appearance will be significantly altered due to the upcoming contract negotiations of Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins, two of the best wide receivers in the game. Boyd and Higgins will both be requesting salaries in the neighborhood of $20 million per season, which would seriously hurt the Bengals’ ability to meet their salary cap. Higgins has made it clear that he wants to remain in Cincinnati, but Boyd has said very little about it.
