The Cincinnati Bengals became the first team in the NFL to lose to the New York Jets this season following a fourth-quarter collapse. New York headed into their bye with a 39-38 win to end the team’s third-longest losing streak to open a season.
For the Bengals, the offense had one of its best days of the season, especially on the ground. But a question remains as the Bengals sit at 3-5: how soon can franchise quarterback Joe Burrow come back?
Burrow suffered a Grade 3 turf toe injury in Week 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He’s been on injured reserve (IR) ever since and was on the sidelines in Week 8 at home.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor spoke about Burrow’s status today.
‘He’s been good. I don’t have any updates [on the progress]. It’s gone as we had hoped,’ Taylor said.
‘He’s had a great attitude, great energy about him. He’s in the meetings, met with him one-on-one, he’s been great to be around, optimistic and things have been going well, but I don’t have any update on the timeline.’
That current timeline keeps Burrow sidelined for much of the regular season following surgery to repair his toe.
Cincinnati traded for veteran quarterback Joe Flacco from the Browns after dropping to 2-3. He led the team to a win in Week 7 against divisional foe Pittsburgh.
Flacco is day-to-day with a shoulder injury and that puts his status for Sunday’s Week 9 game against Chicago in doubt.
With Flacco potentially out, Bengals fans may be wondering when their star quarterback will be back in the lineup. Here’s what we know.
How long is Joe Burrow out?
Burrow had surgery on his toe on Sept. 19 and that procedure requires a minimum three-month recovery. Three months from his surgery date is Dec. 19, two days before the Bengals’ Week 16 road contest against the Miami Dolphins.
Getting him back on the field that quickly uses the minimum recovery time. If things aren’t fully ideal and he still needs a week to ramp up to game shape, that’d put him back on the field for Cincinnati’s Week 17 game at home against the Arizona Cardinals.
Either way, the Bengals need to hold on over the next six weeks to keep pace in the AFC wild card race.
AFC North standings
Pittsburgh Steelers: 4-3 (1-1 in AFC North)
Cincinnati Bengals: 3-5 (2-0)
Baltimore Ravens: 2-5 (1-0)
Cleveland Browns: 2-6 (0-3)