CINCINNATI — Joe Burrow is in a good place to start the 2025 season.
Mentally, physically, emotionally, Burrow confirmed Wednesday in his first regular season weekly session with the media that he feels very confident on where he’s at and where the team is heading into Cleveland this Sunday for the opener.
“I think we’re in a good spot. I’m excited about all of the work we’ve put in all of training camp,” said Burrow, who refrained from using normal to describe camp and preseason. “I don’t know about normal. I don’t know what would be abnormal, but I’m really excited about where our team’s at and the energy of some of the young guys. I know we have a lot of hungry young players to prove themselves, so I’m excited to see them.”
Burrow is so focused and prepared you got the sense he could’ve started the season last weekend.
“It’s weird. Last week, you’re going through the whole game plan, treating it like Week 1, and then you have three days off, and then you got to snap back into it, get back into game week,” Burrow said. “I think the best players you can turn it off and on like that, but that takes practice and reps. As far as the excitement to get out there, excited to play football again, excited to get out in front of the fans and show what we’ve done all offseason. At the end of the day, that’s what this is all about. You’re going (out) and showing everybody the hard work that you’ve put in over the last eight, nine months to make yourself better in front of the world, live on TV. So that’s what sports are. That’s why we love them, and I’m excited to go out there and put on a show.”
But perhaps the most eyebrow-raising moment came when asked if this Bengals team has something to prove after missing the postseason the last two years with identical 9-8 records. It’s clear that Burrow is aware of the narrative locally and nationally that it would be an upset if the Bengals ousted the Ravens as the kings of the AFC North.
Disappointing starts and leaky defenses reduced the Bengals to mere observers of the postseason after two deep playoff runs. Burrow is a quietly intense competitor. Anyone who watched him on the sideline in the waning moments of last seasons’s 37-27 win in Tennessee knows that. Now it’s up to Burrow and his teammates to find a way back to the top of the division, the AFC and eventually return to the Super Bowl.
Nationally, the Bengals are certainly a viable playoff team but they have lost some of the shine that came with the 2021 trip to the Super Bowl and the 2022 10-game win streak that led them to the AFC Championship and within three points of a return trip to the Super Bowl.
“I certainly think that the narrative surrounding our team has shifted,” Burrow said. “I’m not sure I would say most to prove. I would say that we certainly are trying to go out and win as much as we can. We’re putting in a lot of work for it. Like I said, the narrative has certainly shifted, and we’ll see where we’re at, at the end of the year.”
Much was made of Burrow’s “can’t let talent walk out the door” pitch to the front office to keep Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Trey Higgins at the end of last season. And for good reason. The most important player in franchise history wanted to see the team bolster its chances going forward: fortify the defense, fortify the interior offensive line and bring back the immense talent already on the roster.
The Bengals changed defensive coordinators, spent three of its first four draft picks on the front defensive front. They drafted a starting left guard. They signed a run-stopping defensive tackle. They re-signed Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Trey Hendrickson. They signed Noah Fant and guard Dalton Risner.
The front office did its job and now it’s up to the players.
“Yeah. I think that’s fair to say. We’ve been put in the right position,” Burrow told me. “We have the guys out there that we need to go in and achieve our goals. Now all that is behind us. We’re moving forward and now it’s our time to go and perform on the field and be productive.”
What gives Burrow confidence that you can do that?
“History. All the players that we have in that room have gone and proven it time and time again. Part of being in the NFL is proving it every single day. You’re never done. You’re always looking to improve. Production is going to ebb and flow. Over long periods of time, with sustained great play, that production will raise and put us in good spots.”
Burrow also enjoyed his first full uninterrupted offseason leading into camp. COVID in 2020, ACL rehab in 2021, Appendicitis in 2022, calf strain in 2023, wrist recovery/rehab in 2024.
Another reason for Burrow’s confidence is his age and experience on an NFL field. Peyton Manning and Tom Brady would often say they didn’t reach the next level of play until they felt like they had seen everything a defensive coordinator could show him. How often at this point of his career does he get new looks he hasn’t seen?
“Very rarely, I would say,” Burrow said. “Every team has their own style and defense, and so (sometimes) a defensive coordinator will throw something at you that they haven’t necessarily shown on cam for the for the season, but doesn’t mean you haven’t seen it somewhere else.”
