Injuries to key offensive players appeared to jeopardise the Cincinnati Bengals’ season in 2023. The most serious of these was a calf injury sustained by Joe Burrow during training camp that lasted throughout the season; by the time he was fully recovered, his season had been cut short by a damaged wrist ligament that required surgery.
According to Bengals head coach Zac Taylor, Burrow’s recuperation is progressing smoothly.
“It’s positive,” Taylor told ESPN. “It’s right on schedule, and so we’re encouraged with everything we thought it was going to be and where he’s going to fit into our offseason.”
Earlier this month, Burrow stated that he expected to be fully prepared to participate in the offseason programme this spring. “I think the middle of May is when I expect to be cleared for full contact,” Burrow said, according to ESPN. “Over the next month [to] month and a half, we’ll kind of decide all those things.”
When Burrow returns to the pitch, things will be very different for him than they were before. Trent Brown is his new right tackle. Zack Moss has replaced Joe Mixon as the team’s running back after trading him to the Texans. He has a new offensive coordinator, former quarterbacks coach Dan Pitcher, who replaced Brian Callahan when the latter was chosen head coach of the Tennessee Titans.
And he may or may not have wide receiver Tee Higgins, with whom Burrow entered the league in 2020 after Higgins asked for a trade instead of a contract extension. The Bengals have been adamant in declaring that Higgins will be on the squad next season, But you never know what might happen around draft time. In any case, Burrow is expected to stay a fixture in Cincinnati for a long time, assisting the team with weather fluctuations such as those experienced this summer.
