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Ben Baby, ESPN Staff WriterSep 29, 2024, 06:56 PM ET
- Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN’s NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Joe Burrow isn’t one for pregame speeches.
But the situation required one Sunday. With the Bengals off to an 0-3 start, the team’s star quarterback opted to deliver a few words in the locker room in the final moments before Cincinnati’s game against the Carolina Panthers.
Burrow didn’t divulge what was said to his teammates. But the words resonated in a 34-24 road victory to give the Bengals their first win of the season.
It wasn’t something Burrow mulled over at the team hotel the night before, or on the bus ride to the stadium. But the moment felt right for a rare address.
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“[I] just felt like I had something to say,” Burrow said. “I’m not going to go out of my way to be somebody I’m not. But when I have something to say, I’ll definitely step up and say it.”
Burrow was 22-of-31 passing for 232 yards and two touchdowns. Both of those scoring throws came in the first half and helped Cincinnati take a 21-14 halftime lead.
Asked if it was the first time he had delivered a pregame address, Burrow said it’s not something he normally does; typically, he tries to get in the right mindset and stay as calm as possible before kickoff.
In the Super Bowl era (since 1966), 164 teams have started a season with four straight losses, according to ESPN Research. Only one — the 1992 San Diego Chargers — recovered to make the postseason. Burrow said the Bengals knew they needed a victory, especially with the Baltimore Ravens coming to town next weekend for a big AFC North showdown.
“There was really no other option other than to figure out a way to win this game,” Burrow said. “We got it done. Still a lot of room to improve.”
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase was oblivious to Burrow’s pregame speech. Chase said he had a towel draped over his head while Kodak Black’s “My Cousin” was playing through his headphones.
Chase, who played with Burrow at LSU and helped the Tigers win a national championship, said he thought Burrow had done that only once previously in their time together.
“He always had that fire in him, just letting us know he’s still a leader and [to] pick it up sometimes,” Chase said.
“(I) just felt like I had something to say,” Joe Burrow said of addressing his team before Sunday’s game at Carolina. “I’m not going to go out of my way to be somebody I’m not. But when I have something to say, I’ll definitely step up and say it.” Matt Kelley/Getty Images
Chase had one of the biggest moments of Sunday’s game, turning an intermediate pass in the second quarter into a 63-yard touchdown that gave the Bengals a 14-7 lead. Chase broke three tackles and scampered down the field for the team’s longest touchdown of the season.
Cincinnati’s offense leaned on wide receiver Tee Higgins early on. He finished with six catches on 10 targets for 60 yards. Higgins said the reaction in the locker room after Burrow’s address was to get locked in and ready for the game.
“He was being a leader today and it showed,” Higgins said.
The Panthers (1-3) stayed within striking distance in the second half. It wasn’t until Bengals kicker Evan McPherson‘s 46-yard field goal with 1:14 remaining that Cincinnati was able to evade the threat of extending the team’s worst start to a season since 2019.
“I think we had opportunities to knock it open and that’s what we missed,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “That’s on all of us, quite frankly. There’s things I can do better there to help us do that.”
The win might have come at another cost to an already beleaguered defense. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson was ruled out with what Taylor said was a neck stinger.
Hendrickson, one of the league’s best pass rushers who forced an interception against Carolina, left the locker room with his right arm in a sling.
Taylor said the team will get more information Monday about Hendrickson’s long-term status.
