Cincinnati Bengals fans can’t help but fear their 2025 season is already over after Joe Burrow was placed on injured reserve.
The franchise quarterback exited Sunday’s Week 2 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a toe injury, and is now expected to miss three months of NFL action after he elected to undergo surgery.
That kind of time-frame would put him on course to return sometime in December, at the earliest.
While Cincinnati have made their best start to a season since 2018, and are 2-0 thanks to backup Jake Browning’s heroics at the weekend, Burrow‘s injury means their playoff hopes have taken a huge hit.
Only time will tell what the Bengals will do next — either ride it out with Browning, as ESPN Insider Dan Graziano has outlined in his latest talkSPORT USA notebook, or trade for quarterback cover.
Should Cincinnati choose the latter option, there are plenty of intriguing names out there, none more so than rookie Shedeur Sanders.
Bengals urged to make big trade for Browns star
Sanders, who suffered an all-time draft slide before landing with the Bengals’ AFC North rival Cleveland Browns, has not yet seen the field in the regular season.
But he remains one of the most talked about quarterbacks in the league, and some fans believe he’s the answer to Cincinnati’s prayers.
“If the Bengals want to save their season, you make the trade for Shedeur Sanders…PERIOD!” one wrote on X.
“Bengals should trade for Shedeur Sanders and have him lead them to the playoffs if Burrow is out for an extended amount of time,” another said.
“The Bengals should trade for Shedeur Sanders and start him for the remainder of the 2025 season. That would be… ahem… legendary,” a third suggested.
“Bengals need to trade for Shedeur Sanders. He plays just like Joe Burrow, and the Bengals won’t miss a beat,” a fourth wrote.
The Bengals have been urged to trade for Browns rookie SandersGettyEven legendary NFL wide receiver Dez Bryant posed the question, sharing a graphic of the quarterback in a Cincinnati uniform and asking his X followers: ‘Should the Bengals go grab Shedeur Sanders?’
Can Browning lead Bengals in Burrow’s absence?
A quarterback trade, especially for an AFC North rival like Sanders, would prove tricky for the Bengals.
In fact, since 1973, the franchise has only made two in-season player acquisitions via trade — although both of those did come in the last five years.
But all signs point to the Bengals riding it out with their backup.
An undrafted free agent in 2019, Browning didn’t play a regular-season snap until 2023, when Burrow went down.
That year, he went 4-3 in seven starts, with 1,936 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Browning stepped up and led the Bengals to a big win against the JaguarsGetty Cincinnati will need to decide whether to stick with their backup or bring in QB coverGettyBrowning showed he had the ability to execute Zac Taylor’s offensive scheme during that run, and also led the Bengals to a memorable 31-27 win against Jacksonville when he stepped into Burrow’s shoes on Sunday.
He threw 21/32 for 241 yards and two touchdowns, and despite three interceptions, scored the go-ahead TD on a one-yard sneak with 18 seconds left.
If he can cut out those turnovers, and replicate his heroics through the air and on the ground, the Bengals will have a shot at staying afloat.
“I feel very confident in Jake,” Coach Taylor told reporters this week.
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“I think that Jake has proven his caliber in this league, and he can help us win football games and contend for all the things we want to contend for.”
Sanders slammed for Ravens snub
While some fans are hoping to see Shedeur pull on a Bengals jersey this season, the player himself might be less keen on a trade.
Over the weekend, it emerged that the rookie had told the Baltimore Ravens he didn’t want to be drafted there back in April, because he didn’t want to sit behind two-time MVP Lamar Jackson.
If the Bengals do make a call to the Browns, Sanders might take a similar view of Cincinnati.
It was revealed over the weekend that Sanders snubbed the Ravens at the 2025 draftGETTYHe could have a chance in Burrow’s absence, but would have no hope of seeing the field once the franchise star is back.
Clearly, the rookie wants his shot at playing, but his decision to snub the Ravens has this week been criticized by Cam Newton.
“If I’m Shedeur, you would ideally want to learn behind a guy like Lamar Jackson for this particular reason and this particular reason only — not a lot of players can really cope with your star power, with your stardom, right,” the NFL legend said.
“And let’s really give credit where credit is due. At 28 years old, being a phenomenal athlete, the thing that I respect a guy like Lamar Jackson the most, we’ve never heard him have any off the field issues.
“He’s been a stand up guy, and all of our opinions have always led to his on-field performance.
“Not a lot of people can relate to what Shedeur Sanders has been through in his whole life, and that right there serves even more to make him a better player, because it’s the totality of the position.
“I think Lamar Jackson would have been able to relate to him in many ways.”
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