AFC Injuries: Bengals, Steelers, and Browns ALL lost their BEST player in Week 2
- The Pittsburgh Steelers put two starters on IR last week and lost their best defender on Monday
- The Cincinnati Bengals will have to choose whether to risk their QB1 health or play their QB2 for a while
- The Baltimore Ravens (2-0) are in sole posession of the AFC North no. 1 seed
Cincinnati Bengals: QB Joe Burrow (calf)
First things first, the Bengals are the no. 1 sore losers from Sunday's action as they hosted the Ravens, lost to Baltimore, and now face the longest possible odds to make the postseason.
As if that wasn't enough, the Bengals turned their starting quarterback into the then-richest NFL player in history just hours before Week 1, only for him to put up a stinker.
Then, in Week 2, Joe Burrow completed 27 passes for 222 yards but still lost the Bengals their Week 2 game throwing an interception that all but sealed the defeaft.
Speaking after the game, Burrow said he would need "a couple nights, a couple sleeps" to assess the soreness of his calf, per Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. Then, late Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that Bengals head coach Zac Taylor confirmed the team is "still in the evaluation process" of Burrow's nagging calf injury.
Bengals’ HC Zac Taylor told reporters that it was hard to say whether Joe Burrow would be ready to play next Monday night vs. the Rams due to his aggravated calf injury. The Bengals still are in the evaluation process.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 18, 2023
The Bengals have a little bit of extra time as they won't play football until next Monday when they'll face the Los Angeles Rams. Coach Taylor said on Monday that it's "hard to say right now" whether or not Burrow will play.
There is no timeline for Burrow's comeback as he's not even been left out of the team plans at any point yet while completing the first two games in full (barring his benching in Week 1 because of bad play, not injury concerns).
According to Dehner, Burrow "was at the [Bengals] facility" on Monday and walking "briskly" without any "significant impediment." Dehner contacted an injury analyst and quoted her in his story.
"At this point, it’s something he’ll have to manage the entire season," said Dr. Jessica Flynn. "This is not going to go away. He will still be dealing with it most likely in December."
The Bengals have two options: keep playing Burrow, or sit him for a week or two to give his calf some recovery time. As Dr. Flynn put it, "That is a finesse kind of a call," and Burrow can be considered out/available indefinitely at this point.