NFL rumors: Bengals sound oddly unconfident about Joe Burrow contract

The Bengals obviously want to work out a contract extension to keep Joe Burrow in Cincinnati but they don’t exactly sound certain it’ll happen.

One look at the Ravens and Lamar Jackson should convince the Bengals that they need to get a contract extension for Joe Burrow done as quickly as possible.

Burrow has two years left on his deal and will become an unrestricted free agent in 2025. That means Cincinnati doesn’t have to panic about extending Burrow this year, but the clock is ticking.

Allowing Burrow to walk should not be an option for the Bengals. So it’s just a little bit weird that executive vice president Katie Blackburn keeps using words like “hope” to describe early negotiations.

NFL rumors: Bengals sound oddly unconfident about Joe Burrow contract

Blackburn sat down for an interview this week to talk about several issues from Joe Mixon’s future to the possibility of pursuing a new stadium. Burrow’s extension was definitely a key point of conversation.

But the VP really doesn’t make it sound like the franchise is prioritizing negotiations with Burrow this year, saying “we hope that there’s something that can get done.”

“At the end of the day, it’s what Joe wants. I think Joe’s got to be happy, and we’ve got to be happy. And hopefully, we can be happy together,” she said.

That’s all fair enough, but if you’re a Bengals fan, hoping Burrow and Cincinnati can be happy together isn’t enough. The quarterback has already taken them to a Super Bowl. He looks more than capable of winning one some day. At a certain point, the team needs to make certain he’s happy to stay with the Bengals.

It’s not about trying to sign Burrow up to a new deal. It’s about making it happen, no matter what.