Joe Burrow injury update: Season-ending injury shakes up AFC playoff picture

Thursday Night Football was not kind to the Cincinnati Bengals last night. Losing the game to the Baltimore Ravens, their AFC North rivals, was the least of the issues coming out of last night’s Week 11 opening game. A wrist injury sidelined starting quarterback Joe Burrow for the majority of the game, and now it will keep him out of the remainder of the season.

According to Bengals head coach Zac Taylor, Burrow’s wrist injury includes a torn ligament that will sideline him for the remainder of the year. Taylor added that the injury occurred when Burrow was tackled during the game.

The NFL has reportedly launched an investigation into the Bengals’ injury reporting for the week. A social media post from the Bengals before the game showed Burrow wearing a brace on his wrist. The team did not list Burrow on the injury report during the build-up to the game.

Jake Browning is expected to move into the starter’s role with Burrow out.

The injury to Burrow will have a big impact on the AFC playoff picture. With Thursday night’s loss, Cincinnati fell to 5-5 on the year, the only AFC North team to not have a winning record. The loss dropped the Bengals to 10th in the playoff seeding, but they are just a half-game out of the final wild card spot and 1.5 games out of jumping from fourth to second in the AFC North.

The Bengals were considered a potential Super Bowl contender for the AFC before the season. A slow start seemed to have been shaken off as they rounded from a 1-4 start to winning four in a row. Losses the last two weeks, and now Burrow being out for the season, could effectively end any hope Cincinnati had for a postseason appearance this year.

For more on Burrow’s injury and all things Bengals, check out Cincy Jungle.