In just four NFL seasons Joe Burrow has firmly established himself as one of the league’s best passers. Unfortunately, two of those four seasons have ended with a season-ending injury.
Heading into 2024, Burrow has made it clear what his main goal for the season is: To play the entirety of it. Speaking to Ben Felderstein of Complex, Burrow lamented how tough it has been with all of the injuries he’s suffered but wants to use this offseason to get everything feeling right.
“Well, number one, I want to be on the field for all the games,” Burrow said. “I know I’m going to play well when I’m out there. I’m at that point in my career where I’ve seen enough ball and I know myself that I can go out there and play as well as anybody in the game. The biggest strides this year are going to be my body and learning how to get through the season, get through practices with my body, feeling tip, top shape. And so that’s the main focus for the offseason.”
At the start of the 2023 season, the Bengals made Burrow one of the highest-paid players in NFL history by giving him a five-year, $275 million contract extension. But Burrow was hindered by issues and his numbers in the games he did manage to play didn’t quite match what he had done the previous two years.
The second half of the 2023 season saw Burrow miss the final two months of the season after sustaining an injury on Thursday Night Football. Backup Jake Browning filled in admirably, going 4-3 in Burrow’s absence, but it wasn’t enough to get the Bengals into the playoffs.
But the most important ability for almost any quarterback is availability and if Burrow misses any time in 2024, no amount of big-time throws is going to be enough to get the Bengals back into the Super Bowl conversation.
Related: An Up-Close Video Of Joe Burrow’s Injury Has Emerged