Bengals: Joe Burrow plans to be back for first snap of 2021

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow isn’t planning on missing any time in 2021.

When Joe Burrow tore his ACL and MCL in Week 11 against the Washington Football Team, Cincinnati Bengals fans were left with traumatic flashbacks to Carson Palmer’s injuries and no superstar quarterback to try and make this bottom-feeder relevant.

Burrow obviously missed the rest of the 2020 NFL season after sustaining such a serious knee injury, but fortunately for Bengals fans, they have plenty of reason to be excited for the 2021 campaign.

In a new Pro Football Focus podcast with Cris Collinsworth, Burrow revealed he’s been throwing from a drop and throwing play-action passes again for more than a week now. He’s only halfway through his initial nine-month recovery time, but the former LSU star seems pretty confident he won’t be missing any time in the upcoming season.

“I’m very optimistic about where I’m at and also where the team is at,” he said. “Rehab is going very, very well and lifting is going very, very well. I’m in great shape. Legs feel good, knee feels good. There’s still a long way to go, but I’m expecting to be there on the first snap of 2021.

“I’m expecting to play game one. I expect to take part in practice. I’m feeling really good. I’m ahead of schedule.”

Joe Burrow expects to be on the field for the Bengals’ first snap in 2021

This would be fantastic news for Cincinnati, which doesn’t really have much hope of winning games without its 24-year-old franchise star. In his rookie year, Burrow was sensational, throwing for 2,688 yards and 13 touchdowns to five interceptions in 10 games. He completed 65.4 percent of his passes, and although the Bengals went 2-7-1 in that span, he quickly proved himself as the real deal, completing more passes (221) than any other rookie quarterback through their first eight games.

Here’s hoping Burrow’s body cooperates with his optimistic timeline and he’s back on the field for that first snap of 2021.