This feels timely: Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow says he isn’t going to hold back on the physicality.
Burrow’s injury report designation caused a stir this week as he battled a minor back issue while ramping up to normal participation.
Internet sleuths think a Week 1 rush in which Burrow lowered his shoulder in an attempt to get more yardage might explain his back woes. But this week, he told onlookers that he won’t change the way he plays.
"I was comfortable with it,” Burrow told Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. It was either that or kick a field goal. It's a decision that I made. Maybe seven years ago I liked that more than I do now."
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor endorsed the idea during his own presser.
"You want the first down. He wants
the first down. You want a guy who fights for every yard," Taylor said, per Hobson. "I think that's what he's proven to us. He's willing to use his legs to get us everything he can to put us in great scoring position with a quarterback draw at the end of the half. That's a weapon he's got and he uses it. I'm not going to second-guess every decision he makes. That's easy to do. He understands the moments. When he needs to get down. When he needs to fight for the extra yardage. That was the situation where he did that."
With this specific back issue, who knows? Maybe the play in question did it. More likely, the general wear and tear of Week 1 action as a whole caused some discomfort.
Either way, Burrow isn't exactly the biggest quarterback in the NFL and it’s a little easy to forget he’ll be turning 30 years old in December. His injury history takes a toll, too.
Bengals fans, at least, wouldn’t complain if Burrow eased up on the aggression and unnecessary hits that add up, instead opting for more throwaways and such. We’ll see, though, if these comments from Burrow line up with what actually happens on the field after this latest small health footnote.
This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals’ Joe Burrow says injury won't stop him from running, risks
