Joe Burrow had the same blunt reaction all Bengals fans had upon first seeing Cincinnati's 2025 schedule

There's a checklist now for Cincinnati Bengals fans to overview while looking at the upcoming regular seasons schedule.

When's the bye week? How many primetime games? What day and time are they playing the Baltimore Ravens on the road?

Incredulously, the answer to the latter is the same as it has been for the last two years years: Thursday night in November.

Joe Burrow noticed as well.

During his first press conference since the end of the 2024 campaign, Burrow offered some takes on Cincinnati's 2025 slate. He led with recognizing his Bengals being asked to play their toughest divisional rivals on a short week in their stadium for the third time in as many seasons, and a fourth consecutive night game in general. He even offered a plea to the folks in charge of the schedule.

"Playing in Baltimore for the fourth straight primetime year isn't ideal," Burrow said. "Maybe we could get one of those in Cincinnati next year, please?" 

The "please" was a nice touch, because seriously, do they have to personally ask at this point?

You'd have to go back to 2018 for the last time the Bengals hosted the Ravens under the regular season lights in Cincinnati, a few years before Paul Brown Stadium was renamed Paycor Stadium. Andy Dalton and A.J. Green connected for three touchdowns in a 34-23 Thursday night victory in Week 2 of that season. Lamar Jackson was still two months from starting his first-ever game.

Tipping the scales is one thing. The least the league could do is giving the Bengals a break when going to Baltimore. They haven't played while the sun is still overlooking M&T Bank Stadium since 2021, which is also the last time they exited the field as winners of that matchup in that environment. 

It's a issue that even executives in charge of the schedule are aware of, but an issue that can't be reflected on too much until next year.

"There's nothing I can control about that right now," head coach Zac Taylor said. "Obviously, we'd love to host some divisional primetime games at some point. You know, we get Pittsburgh this year, so that's exciting, and over time, I'm sure that will tilt back in our favor."

The Bengals' lone home primetime game this year features the Pittsburgh Steelers coming to town for a Thursday night tilt, their first primetime meeting in Cincinnati since 2020.

It's a start in the right direction, but the momentum needs to continue into 2026.