Burrow underwent surgery to repair a toe injury on Sept. 19 and will return nearly a month ahead of schedule.
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“We pushed it within the limits of what we could do, and we just based it on how I felt, how I was recovering, how it looked the next day after we pushed it, and we went from there,” said Burrow, who missed nine games.
Burrow returns to a 3-8 Bengals team that has lost four straight and is tied for last in the AFC North. Although the Bengals are floundering, it was important to coach Zac Taylor so that Burrow would return when he was ready, regardless of the Bengals’ record.
It was important to Burrow, too.
“I’m a football player,” Burrow said. “If I get hurt, I’ll go through the rehab process and then let everyone know when I feel like I can go out and play. I don’t really know what else to say about it. I’m never going to go to someone and say, ‘Yeah, I’m healthy, but I don’t think I should go out and play.’ That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. I’m not going to live my life and play this game scared of something happening.”
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Although Burrow hasn’t played in more than two months, he looked sharp in practice last week. Coaches worked with Burrow on the scout team and first-team offense during 11-on-11 drills in which he got a better feel for the speed of the game.
Burrow had the opportunity to play last week against the New England Patriots in a game the Bengals lost, 26-20. Taylor decided to stick with Joe Flacco for that game and Burrow said he understood the decision.
“I had a good workout earlier in the week and was feeling good,” Burrow said. “Wednesday and Thursday workouts were done, I did a lot of reps. My body was pretty sore. Not necessarily my toe. My toe feels great. The rest of my body was out there for so long. I was sure I would be able to do well to play on Sunday. Zac ended up thinking it was better to wait four extra days. I think it was a good decision.”
After a challenging two months, Burrow said it’s meaningful to have the opportunity to play Thanksgiving on a national stage. He has clear memories of watching the Detroit Lions and quarterback Matthew Stafford as a kid.
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Baltimore started the season 1-5, but has won five straight to move into a tie with Pittsburgh atop the AFC North.
“You don’t like them,” Burrow said. “It’s a divisional rivalry. You have respect for them. It’s intense out there. I wanted to be there to play on Thanksgiving. It’s something I always wanted to do, that I pushed for in the past, and the NFL gave it to us. Then, you know, the injury happened and I thought I wasn’t going to be able to play. And then as we got closer, I felt like it was a real possibility. So that’s exciting for me. It’s a national stage to go out and prove yourself after not playing for several weeks.”
The Bengals will also have wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase back after he served his one-game suspension for spitting on Pittsburgh’s Jalen Ramsey. However, Tee Higgins will miss Thursday night’s game due to a concussion.
Chase said he was happy because “I got my friend back” when talking about Burrow.
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“I know he’s excited about it. There’s no better game for him to come back and show what he can do,” Chase said. “I know he wanted to play (last week), but I don’t think it was time. They have another week to relax and recover. So his legs should feel good, his feet should feel good and he should be ready.”
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