Joe Burrow said his back tightness should not keep him out of Week 2, even after he was present for practice and skipped team stretch. The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback said he felt good and expects to be ready against the Houston Texans.
The issue surfaced just days after Burrow took a hard hit to his throwing shoulder from Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Alex Anzalone in the first half on Sunday. Burrow said he did not know exactly what play caused the tightness and did not really start feeling it until after the game, but he brushed it off as normal soreness and said, "It's no big deal."
That matters because Burrow is the engine of a Bengals team that opened the 2025 season at 1-0, while the Texans came in at 0-1. In Week 1, Burrow finished 25-of-35 for 254 yards, with one touchdown and one interception, while the Bengals leaned on a defense that forced four turnovers and got a scoop-and-score from linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. The offense also got key production from Chase Brown and Mike Gesicki, even as Ja'Marr Chase had two catches for 12 yards on four targets.
Burrow said the limited practice work did not change his preparation, because Cincinnati gets enough mental reps and walk-throughs to keep him ready. He said he got some good mental reps and that the team would be ready to go, adding that it would be ridiculous to think he would sit in Houston as a precaution. He also said the back tightness would not change how he scrambles or runs, because if he is not getting surgery, he is going to be out there.
The bigger question is not whether Burrow sounds worried. It is whether a quarterback who has already played through major injuries, and who has seen his seasons shortened before, can keep absorbing hits without the kind of setback that changes a year. For now, he says the answer is simple: he'll be on the field when the Bengals face the Texans.
