Bengals' Joe Burrow makes big admission about worrisome injury history

A previous report suggested that Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor had made some changes to the team's offensive game plan to "hopefully protect Joe Burrow more so [the Bengals] don’t have pass-rushers rushing 50 times a game to attack them."

During a recent conversation with NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, Burrow revealed that he is now "so dialed" in on nutrition in an attempt to stay healthy. The Bengals' starting quarterback has also seemingly learned when taking risks during games is and isn't worth it. 

Joe Burrow now willing to "mitigate risk early in the game until it’s needed"

"It’s where there’s a free runner in the pocket and I just dirt it, or a keeper and I get pressure, and I just throw it away, where normally my physical ability would have let me make that guy miss and go make a play; last year I couldn’t," Burrow told Breer. "I had to get rid of the ball and live to see another down a little bit. Not being able to move around, I had to tailor my game to that. And so, as I said, I can play quarterback a lot of different ways. When it’s needed in the fourth quarter, I can go and do that. I can mitigate risk early in the game until it’s needed." 

Last season, Burrow suffered a toe injury in Week 2 that kept him sidelined until Week 13. His 2023 campaign ended prematurely due to a wrist injury. During his rookie year, he went down with a torn ACL and MCL in November 2020.

Joe Burrow embracing Super-Bowl-or-bust pressure

Burrow has made it known throughout the summer that he is "trying to manifest" the Bengals winning the Super Bowl after the club made numerous moves to bolster its defense.

"I’ve never understood why people are scared to say it," Burrow said about those comments. "I guess people get scared of how the media will portray them or their team in a certain way. But you have to set expectations with yourself, your teammates, your organization. Everybody says they want to win the Super Bowl. You talk about it every day, you set that expectation every day, you go and work for it every single day. I mean, I don’t know the answer to that for everybody, but that’s what I want to do, that’s what I’m trying to do, that’s what I do this for. I won the championship in college, and there’s no freaking better feeling than that. And if you don’t talk about it, I don’t know how you can do it."

Some think Burrow could consider asking for a trade if the Bengals don't go on a lengthy playoff run this coming winter. If he can stay healthy from September through Week 18, he could receive an opportunity to guide Cincinnati to the one victory that has eluded him as a pro.