Bengals’ Joe Burrow says sideline scowls part of being a leader

CINCINNATI — Joe Burrow didn’t notice, but it seems many who watched Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders did.

During the Cincinnati Bengals‘ 41-24 win over Las Vegas, Burrow was seen on broadcast cameras scowling and looking generally upset despite the positive performance. The Bengals won their first home game of the season after dropping their first four, and Burrow became the first player this season to throw five or more touchdowns in multiple games.

After the game, Burrow said that unless the team achieves perfection, there wasn’t much to be happy about. Two days later, Burrow said he didn’t see all the social media chatter about his disposition and said his demeanor could be better at times.

But he noted the nonverbal expressions are part of his growth as a leader.

“Maybe I could have not let my emotions show quite as much, but it’s also something that I’ve tried to do more and I know people in the locker room have wanted me to do a little more, whether good or bad,” Burrow said. “But I can’t show my emotion positively and then when things don’t go well, not let that be known as well.”

The franchise quarterback who is in the midst of his best season said it was an honest depiction of his feelings in the moment as the Bengals (4-5) continue to try to climb out of an early hole. Cincinnati began the season with three straight losses, their worst start since the Bengals drafted Burrow with the No. 1 pick in 2020.

On Tuesday, two days before the Bengals face the Baltimore Ravens (6-3) in a prime-time AFC North showdown, Burrow said his comfort level with being more demonstrative this season has been a give-and-take process.

“I know that people feed off of my emotion in a positive way,” Burrow said. “It’s tough for me as a quarterback. I play my best when … I’m not up and down and pissed and then happy and all that.”

“Maybe I could have not let my emotions show quite as much, but it’s also something that I’ve tried to do more, and I know people in the locker room have wanted me to do a little more, whether good or bad. But I can’t show my emotion positively and then when things don’t go well, not let that be known as well.”

Joe Burrow

Burrow enters Thursday’s game ranked second in Total QBR at 76.3, the highest mark in his career. He trails only Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson (77.3), according to ESPN Research.

Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who is second in the league in receiving yards, said Burrow’s leadership approach is needed given the Bengals’ need to have a near-flawless second half of the season to confidently earn a playoff spot.

“But that’s always been him,” Chase said. “He’s always been that type of guy to hold himself to a standard. He’s just doing it more vocally now.”

The Ravens, last season’s AFC North champions, are looking to sweep the Bengals in this season’s series. Cincinnati had won the division in 2021 and 2022 and reached the Super Bowl and AFC Championship Game in each of those respective seasons.

Last season’s title hopes were derailed when Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury against Baltimore in Week 11, which was also a Thursday night game. Burrow joked that the league likes to put a star player back into a similar position a year after they sustain a serious injury, citing New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers opening the year on “Monday Night Football” after he sustained an Achilles injury in prime time of Week 1 the year before.

But for Burrow, any added significance comes from simply the team on the schedule.

“Divisional opponents always mean a lot,” Burrow said. “Especially where we are right now, [the] point of the year, playing Baltimore is a big game.”