Schultz goes on to suggest that this timeline is part of the reason the Bengals didn’t want to move Trey Hendrickson at the NFL’s trade deadline. Other prior reporting has suggested the Bengals lowered their asking price on the trade block, but other teams didn’t want to pay even that.

Mike Greenberg, a die-hard Jets fan and host of ESPN’s “Get Up,” said Thursday that his group chats with other Jets fans are buzzing with Burrow talk. “The quarterback they want is Joe Burrow,” Greenberg said as he looked at NFL insider Adam Schefter.

Injured Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) walks on the field after the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 7 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Paycor Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025. The Bengals won, 33-31. / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Burrow probably turned a few more heads after practice, too, while chatting about his injury with reporters. There, Burrow pointed out that this was an easier injury to come back from than the tricky knee and wrist issues of past years, almost jokingly noting that he’s used to ligament injuries by now.