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Re: The Cincinnati Bengals should sit Joe Burrow for the rest of the season

News: The season is over. It’s time to sit Joe Burrow. There is no reason to risk him getting injured in the last five games. Take a look at some of the elite pass rushers the Bengals will face the rest of the season. Micah Parsons with the Cowboys, Myles Garrett with the Browns, TJ Watt with the Steelers. If the Bengals are smart, they will shut down Burrow and look ahead to 2025.

Answer: In theory, this makes a lot of sense given Burrow’s injury history and his importance to the future of the franchise. It’s certainly not an exaggeration to say that the Bengals could be in contention for the NFL’s worst team in 2025 if Burrow were sidelined for an extended period of time with an injury.

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In reality, though, the Bengals aren’t going to shut down Burrow for the rest of the season — nor should they. For one thing, the Bengals are not officially eliminated from the playoffs. What kind of message would that send to the rest of the team, even after her departure? Joe doesn’t have to risk his health for the rest of the season, but we expect everyone else to play and give their best. It just doesn’t work that way.

Furthermore, even if the Bengals wanted to sit Burrow, he would refuse to do so. He’s a winner. He is a leader. He’s hungry to get better. Never forget that Burrow said that the window to win a Super Bowl was his entire career, so even in a losing season, he always has that in the back of his mind.

This is a critical time for the franchise. The window of opportunity to catch up has closed for the core of the 2021 and 2022 teams, and the Bengals face a major rebuild. They need Burrow’s leadership more than ever. They need him to continue playing at an MVP level, to show the rest of the locker room that losing and complacency are unacceptable – and to set an example for so many of the young players who have struggled this season.

Burrow spoke after Sunday’s loss about the rest of the season being a test for the locker room. He wants to see who keeps playing hard and who makes it. It was a perfect message.

The business factors are also worth mentioning. The Bengals still want to sell as many tickets as possible for their final two home games, and Burrow is the main attraction.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Should Joe Burrow miss the Bengals’ NFL season, will he risk injury?