At one point last week, the signs were pointing toward Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow returning for Sunday’s game against the Patriots. After two straight days of full-participation practices, something changed.
By Friday, Joe Flacco got the starter reps, in order to get him ready for the Week 12 contest with New England. Burrow ultimately wasn’t activated from injured reserve.
One theory was that, with two games only four days apart, the Bengals decided to wait until Thanksgiving night for Burrow’s return.
That said, it’s still not certain Burrow will play when the Bengals travel to Baltimore for the Thursday night game. Per a source with knowledge of the situation, “Nothing is set in stone.” Burrow’s status for the Week 13 game is “TBD” based on his how body responds after recent and upcoming practice time.
Burrow “wants to play.” But there’s a bigger consideration at play. At 3-8, the Bengals are facing a very small chance of making it to the postseason. If there’s a significant risk of re-injuring torn toe ligaments that required surgery after a Week 2 injury, is the reward worth it?
While the Bengals want a return on the investment they’ve made in Burrow, they also need to protect that investment for 2026. The chances of not having Burrow 100 percent throughout the 2026 offseason program needs to be balanced against the upside, if any, of having him available for the final six games of the season.