Joe Burrow isn’t entertaining the easy narrative. With the Cincinnati Bengals sitting at 3-8 and Zac Taylor catching heat, the franchise quarterback made it clear this one’s on the guys in helmets, not headsets.
As he gears up for a Thanksgiving night return against the Baltimore Ravens, Joe Burrow went out of his way to back the Cincinnati coaching staff. The Bengals have allowed a league-worst 32.7 points per game via ESPN, the record looks ugly, and fans are calling for changes. Burrow’s message? Look in the mirror.
“We have good coaches,” Burrow said, before launching into a mini clinic on how the NFL really works. He pointed out that no scheme is so “revolutionary” that it can save players from poor execution, and stressed that coaches grind to put them in position. At the end of the day, he said, players “have to take some accountability and go play really good.”
Joe Burrow is not pinning the Bengals latest disappointing season on the coaching staff:
"At the end of the day, players have to take some accountability and go play really good." pic.twitter.com/XLXbI64wDT
— Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) November 25, 2025
It’s a strong public endorsement of Zac Taylor and his staff at a time when the noise is loud. Burrow and Taylor have been tied together since 2020. That history gives his words some weight.
Now Burrow steps back into the fire on a national stage. The quarterback returns from turf toe surgery nearly a month ahead of schedule, after missing nine games. Cincinnati has dropped four straight and sits tied for last in the AFC North, but Burrow pushed to play once he felt ready.
The Ravens' matchup also brings back some fresh scars. In their last meeting on Nov. 7, 2024, Burrow lit up Baltimore for 428 passing yards and four touchdowns on 34-of-56 passing, with Ja’Marr Chase exploding for 11 catches, 264 yards, and three scores via the ESPN Box Score. The Bengals still lost 35-34 as Lamar Jackson carved up the defense for 290 yards and four touchdown passes.
This time, Cincinnati gets Ja’Marr Chase back from a one-game suspension, but Tee Higgins will sit with a concussion. Burrow, who insists he’ll never choose to sit just because of a bad record, called Thanksgiving a chance to “prove yourself again” after weeks on the sideline.
