Joe Burrow’s Preseason Preparation, Light September Schedule Bodes Well for Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals have gotten off to slow starts in September since they selected quarterback Joe Burrow first overall in the 2020 draft.

They were 0–2–1 in the first month of the season in 2020, 2–2 in 2022 and 1–2 in 2023. The one year Cincinnati posted a winning record in September — 3–1 in 2021 — the team went to the Super Bowl.

Besides February, where Burrow is 0–1 with the loss to the Rams in the Big Game, September is the only month he has a losing record. Burrow and the Bengals are 6–7–1 in September and 8–8 in October. However, they get better as the season goes on: 7–5 in November, 6–2 in December and 7–1 in January, including the playoffs.

This just might be the year Cincinnati starts hot out of the gate as Burrow is primed to go through a “normal” training camp for the first time in his career. He was cleared for contact this week after a wrist injury shut him down for the season in November. Coach Zac Taylor also expects Burrow will play in the preseason for the first time in three years.

Burrow’s previous training camps have been derailed by injuries and oddities. There was the strained calf in 2023, an appendectomy in 2022, ACL recovery in 2021 and the COVID-altered training camp in 2020 when preseason was canceled.

During the Bengals’ first training camp practice on Wednesday, Burrow was a full participant. And despite Burrow’s new look , wide receiver Tee Higgins said: “He looks like the Joe y'all seen in the Super Bowl run."

That’s a great sign for Cincinnati, which missed the playoffs with a 9–8 record last season after winning back-to-back AFC North titles. A healthy Bengals team is expected to contend with the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs. Burrow is the only quarterback other than Tom Brady to defeat Patrick Mahomes in the playoffs.

Cincinnati and Kansas City will play for the first time since the 2022 AFC Championship Game Week 2 at Arrowhead. Beyond that heavyweight clash, the September slate should be smooth sailing for the Bengals.

They open against the Patriots at home and host the Commanders on Monday Night Football in Week 3. Cincinnati is back on the road in Week 4 against the Panthers, the worst team in the NFL last season. The Bengals will be favored against New England, Washington and Carolina. And though they’ll be underdogs in Kansas City, Cincinnati has won at Arrowhead.

If the Bengals can start 3–1 in September, it would be their first time doing so since 2018. An advantageous early-season schedule sets them up well before division play begins in Week 6 against Baltimore. But Cincinnati has had letdown losses in September before, including back-to-back in 2022 to the Mitch Trubisky Steelers and Cooper Rush Cowboys.

Burrow participating in training camp — and potentially taking snaps in preseason games with other starters — could help build the necessary chemistry to avoid similar slip-ups.

“We're trying new things to try to help those slow starts and getting off to faster starts, putting us in a better position at the midway point of the season,” Burrow said of playing in the preseason.

A better start in 2022 might have earned the Bengals home-field advantage in the AFC Championship against the Chiefs. And in 2023, it could have been enough for Cincinnati to make the playoffs.

“I'm focused on continued improvement and I'm really happy with the offseason that I had,” Burrow said. “I'm really happy to have this training camp to continue to hone my skills and improve and build this team chemistry for this run we're about to go on."

There are 16 days until the Bengals’ first preseason game against the Buccaneers on Aug. 10 when Burrow might take the field, but the real target date for him to be at his best — and healthiest — is Sep. 8 against the Patriots when his fifth season begins.

Related: Cincinnati Bengals 2024 NFL Season Preview: Healthy Joe Burrow Is the Key

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