Joe Burrow addresses Bengals future after string of concerning comments

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow made comments last Wednesday which suggested his future with the franchise might be up in the air. Burrow said, “If I want to keep doing this, I have to have fun doing it. I’ve been through a lot and if it’s not fun, then what am I doing it for? So that’s the mindset I’m trying to bring to the table.”

Wednesday, seven days after his original comments, Burrow was pressed about his NFL future. Asked if there was a world where he wouldn’t be the Bengals quarterback in 2026, Burrow stated, “I can’t see that, no.” The reporter asked a follow-up, wondering if Burrow had ever thought about the possibility of not being in Cincinnati during his career. Burrow responded, “You think about a lot of things.”

Reporter: "Is there any world you're not the QB of the Bengals next year?"

Joe Burrow: "I can't see that, no."

Reporter: "Have you ever thought about the possibility of not being here during your career?"

Burrow: "You think about a lot of things…"

Full back-and-forth ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/yoIfkZCn8E

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) December 17, 2025

Burrow, the 2020 No. 1 overall pick out of LSU, has missed significant time with injuries in three of his six seasons with the Bengals. The Bengals got off to a 2-0 start this season, but Burrow suffered a toe injury which required surgery. When Burrow returned in Week 13, Cincinnati was 3-8, a long shot to make the postseason. Now 4-10, they are eliminated from playoff contention.

Joe Burrow: ‘I just want to play ball’

Burrow will start the final three games of the season. Why? The answer is simple: he likes playing football.

“I like playing football,” Burrow said, via Dave Clark of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “For the same reasons that I wanted to push to come back from injury. The same reasons I want to play this week. It feels like everybody’s trying to do everything in their power to make me not play football. And I feel like I’m fighting it, like, fighting everybody else. I just want to play ball. That’s all I want to do.”

The 29-year-old is in his prime. Last season, he played the position as well as anybody in the league. Burrow wants to get back to doing that.

“I mean, you think about it, but you think about a lot of different things in your life,” Burrow said. “Just like everybody does. You think about all the different possibilities that could happen. I’m gonna be playing for a long time. I expect to play for a long time. And I expect to play well, and consistently great for a long time.”