Things haven't been going well for the Cincinnati Bengals recently, who currently sit at 3-6 as the season passes its midway point. Quarterback Joe Burrow has been out of the lineup since Week 3, and although backup Joe Flacco has done an admirable job of picking up the slack in recent weeks, the team's defense has still been among the worst units in the NFL this year.
Recently, the team got some positive news when Burrow was back at practice, and now, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter has reported on when Burrow could make a potential return to the lineup.
“A potential return date for Joe Burrow could be Week 14 at Buffalo,” reported Schefter on X, formerly Twitter.
Before that date, the Bengals have a gauntlet of likely playoff teams on their schedule, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, and Baltimore Ravens, and when will have another matchup with Baltimore sandwiched on the other end of the Bills matchup. All told, it's certainly possible that the Bengals could be effectively out of the playoff race by the time the Bills game rolls around, which will call into question how smart it would be for the team to trot Burrow back out from injury with nothing to play for.
A rough season for the Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals entered this year hoping to get back into the playoff mix after two years on the outside looking in. For the first stretch of the season, it looked like Cincinnati might do just that, as the team got off to a 2-0 start, shaking off their early-season woes from years prior.
However, the wheels have fallen off since then, and while Burrow's injury may be the most obvious reason why, the team has gotten some legitimately great production from Flacco on multiple occasions now, calling into question just how much a healthy Burrow would have helped the cause.
In any case, the Bengals will next take the field on Sunday on the road against the Steelers at 1:00 PM ET.
