A knee injury took Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow out of the game midway through Cincinnati’s Sunday afternoon match-up with the Washington Football Team. In a tweet soon after, Burrow implied he would not return to play until 2021.
Burrow, who was the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL draft, was injured early in the third quarter when he was hit high and low by two Washington linemen after throwing a pass. His left leg bent awkwardly, and he couldn’t put any weight on it, ending his day at 22-of-34 passing for 203 yards and a touchdown.
His season appears over, too.
Thanks for all the love. Can’t get rid of me that easy. See ya next year✊
— Joey Burrow (@JoeyB) November 22, 2020
Burrow’s departure allowed Alex Smith and Washington (3-7) to take over and move a half-game back of Philadelphia for first place in the NFL’s weakest division. Just after Burrow left, the 36-year-old Smith — who broke his right tibia and fibula on the same field just over two years ago — led a go-ahead, 55-yard scoring drive that ended with a 3-yard TD pass to Steven Sims.
In his second start since that gruesome injury Nov. 18, 2018, Smith was 17 of 25 for 166 yards and had a pass intercepted after it was tipped late in the first half.
Washington rookie running back Antonio Gibson ran for 94 yards and a TD. The Bengals ultimately fell 9-20 to Washington.
Burrow’s replacement, Ryan Finley, couldn’t do much for Cincinnati (2-7-1), which didn’t punt once in the first half with the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at the helm. Finley was 3 of 10 for 30 yards and an interception in the final minutes.
Running back Joe Mixon, who had been placed on the Bengals’ injured reserve list earlier in the week, tweeted a message of support for Burrow shortly after the injury. Other teammates quickly joined in.
PRAYERS UP FOR MY QB🙏🏽@JoeyB
— ⚡️Primetime!!!⚡️ (@Joe_MainMixon) November 22, 2020
Retired Cincinnati sportscaster Marty Brennaman chimed in with his own take, claiming that the Bengals had not built a strong enough offensive line to protect Burrow from injuries like the one that took him out.
This injury is on Mike Brown and the grossly inept Bengals organization! Those people should be ashamed! They had months to give him an offensive line that could adequately protect this young man. I hope they all have trouble sleeping. The hell with 'em!
— Marty Brennaman (@brennaman_marty) November 22, 2020
