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Ben Baby, ESPN Staff Writer
CINCINNATI — Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow rubbed his chin and stared forward as he pondered what’s next for the team amid a very disappointing season.
Sunday’s 44-38 home loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers was the latest setback for a team that started the year with championship aspirations. Once again, Burrow said the playoffs were the furthest thing from his mind as Cincinnati’s odds for making the postseason slipped considerably.
And with five games remaining, Burrow said how players respond will speak volumes about how the roster will be built moving forward.
“I think we’ll learn a lot about who we have in the locker room — the guys we can count on going forward and guys that we can’t,” Burrow said after the game.
Cincinnati’s fifth-year quarterback and the rest of the offense did plenty early to keep the Bengals (4-8) in contention for a crucial AFC North win. But again, the offensive firepower wasn’t enough to overcome Cincinnati’s defensive issues.
The Bengals allowed 520 total yards, matching a season high, and surrendered a season-high 44 points — though seven came on a strip sack of Burrow that was returned for a touchdown by the Steelers.
The Bengals are the first team in NFL history to lose four games or more when scoring at least 33 points, per ESPN research.
When asked about the disparity between scoring and success, receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who leads the league in receiving yards (1,142) and receiving touchdowns (13), said it’s hard to process that Cincinnati can’t get a win. The Bengals have lost four of their last five games, including three in a row.
“It’s kind of our expectation now,” Chase, who had a team-high 86 receiving yards and a touchdown in the loss, said of the offense having such a small margin of error.
According to ESPN Research, only on six occasions in league history has a quarterback averaged 275 or more passing yards per game and had at least 30 touchdowns and five or fewer interceptions through 12 games of a season. Of those six, Burrow is the only one to have a losing record. And four of the last five to do it have won the league’s MVP award.
Burrow also set the record for the most losses in a season (five) after throwing for 300 yards and three touchdowns in a single game.
He wasn’t perfect on Sunday against the Steelers (9-3), however. Burrow had an interception off a batted ball and had two strip sacks that were turnovers, including Pittsburgh linebacker Payton Wilson‘s scoop and score in the fourth quarter that sent fans streaming to the exits.
As the losses pile up, Burrow acknowledged the cumulative weight on him to perform for this team.
“I feel the pressure on me to be great,” Burrow said. “That’s part of playing quarterback in the NFL. I just have to play to the absolute peak of my ability every week for us to go and win. Some games I’ve done that. Some games I haven’t.”
He had a very noticeable limp as he walked through the locker room after the defeat. He said he was cleated on his right leg on the first play of the game, which created a gash that caused significant bleeding. He will know more about how he feels physically on Tuesday, he said.
Burrow said the team needs to change “a lot of things” after yet another AFC North defeat.
In 2021 and 2022, the Bengals won back-to-back division championships and had a 7-5 overall record against division foes, matching the best record in the AFC North during that span. Cincinnati is just 2-8 in such games over the last two seasons.
And as the franchise quarterback who is playing on a five-year deal worth $275 million, which is tied for the second-highest annual average value in the league, Burrow said he will find the best ways to let the front office know what needs to change moving forward.
“This is a tough season, and the cornerstones of this organization are going to be remembered by more than just this season,” Burrow said. “We will be remembered by how we handled this.”