Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has been very deliberate in the public pressure applied to the organization ahead of a critical offseason.
There, Burrow has repeatedly stressed that he wants the team to keep top names like Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Trey Hendrickson and Mike Gesicki.
The stance is making waves around the league, with at least one executive making a bold claim about the situation.
“I’m of the thought that when he decided not to make an Eli Manning situation with Cincinnati in the draft, that he had talks beforehand about how they were going to proceed with player acquisition,” an NFL executive told Mike Sando of The Athletic. “And now it is to the point where they have to hold up their end of the bargain.”
Another kept it short and sweet to Sando: “He is putting the hammer on them.”
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Hammer, indeed. An Eli Manning situation? Highly unlikely.
More likely? Like fans, Burrow watched as key names like Jessie Bates and DJ Reader left in recent years and the defense suffered dramatically in the aftermath. Poor drafting and follow-up signings made the problem worse.
For Burrow (and most sensible onlookers), the solution is simple — pay the good players so they stay.
That’s easier than it sounds, given some of the gaudy contracts involved for the mentioned top names, of course. But indeed, fans would surely agree it’s time the Bengals listen to what Burrow has to say.