The Cincinnati Bengals have reportedly offered a contract extension to their starting quarterback Joe Burrow. The team’s head coach, Zac Taylor, gave his opinion on Burrow’s likely decision to remain in Cincinnati next season.
On Monday, Taylor revealed that the contract extension talks were “starting now internally.” Currently, Burrow has one year remaining on his rookie contract, with the possibility of a maximum deal for $11.5 million next year. In his contract, Burrow will become a free agent in 2025, but the Bengals are expecting him to sign for multiple years ahead of the 2023 season, as per reports.
When asked about Burrow’s contract value, Taylor did not mention any detail of it. Instead, Taylor expressed his admiration and told Pro Football Talk that the 26-year-old player is “everything the Bengals want for.”
“That’s the business we’re in right now. He’s everything we want to be. He’s a hard worker. He cares about his teammates. He cares about where he’s at—Ohio. That fan base, I think he’s our way,”
said Taylor.
Statistically, with Burrow leading the offense as a quarterback, Cincinnati has won five playoff games over the past two seasons, surpassing the franchise record 53 years ago.
“So, we are very proud to have Joe Burrow at the fullback position,”
Taylor said.
Burrow was named to his first Pro Bowl and became the Player of the Year award finalist in the 2022 NFL season after helping the Bengals win 12 games, including 10 straight wins after a 4–4 run from the start.
Burrow wants to stay in Cincinnati
Before starting the 2022 NFL playoffs, Burrow talked about his intention to play long-term with the Bengals. As reported by NBC Sports’ Mariah Taylor, Burrow wanted to spend his professional career with the Bengals, who picked him first in the 2020 NFL Draft.
“My plan is to be here my whole career,”
Burrow told NBC Sports.
“I hope Zac (Taylor) will be here for my entire career, and I hope that as many of our guys will be around for my career as possible.”
Aside from talking about his future career with the Bengals, Burrow also shared that he was happy with how the team worked behind the scenes.
“I have great confidence that the front office is doing its job in the off-season. We’ve drafted well. We’ve brought in great free agents. We’ve asked guys for waivers that’s had a real impact on our team. I think we’ve got one of the best front offices in the league,”
Burrow said.
Burrow described Taylor as the best coach in the NFL who leveraged his potential and gave him confidence.
“Zach, in my opinion, is the best coach in the league. That gives me a lot of confidence to go out there and say that,”
Burrow said.
When asked about Burrow’s future, Bengals owner Mike Brown explained to ESPN that the franchise’s primary goal this season is to keep Burrow at Paycor Stadium.
“He’s going to have a long run.”
Mike Brown, owner of the Cincinnati Bengals
“We definitely want him to be here. I think his window will extend throughout his career. But there’s the fact that when you don’t have to pay an extraordinary amount for a quarterback, it leaves room to pay more for other players, so you can keep more good players,”
he said.
