With star quarterback Joe Burrow expected to be sidelined for a minimum of three months due to turf toe and subsequent surgery to repair the injury, the Cincinnati Bengals are adding some quarterbacks.
According to NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero, the Bengals are signing veteran quarterback Mike White and third-year quarterback Sean Clifford to their practice squad, giving head coach Zac Taylor some options behind now-starter Jake Browning.
Currently, the Bengals have Browning set to start while Brett Rypien is the backup, having signed with Cincinnati’s practice squad following final roster cuts. Rypien had been with Minnesota this offseason, going through training camp and the preseason with the Vikings.
White was with the Buffalo Bills all offseason, having signed an extension with Buffalo to be part of a QB room with Josh Allen. But White was among the Bills’ final roster cuts and was out of the league until signing with the Bengals Tuesday.
Clifford was a fifth-round pick of the Green Bay Packers out of Penn State in the 2023 NFL Draft and spent two years with the Packers before being released in August.
Burrow suffered the toe injury on a sack in the Week 2 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, putting him on the shelf for a minimum of three months. The injury initially wasn’t feared to be serious, but Monday morning it was deemed Burrow needed surgery and will be out much of the season. He’ll miss both Steelers games in the process.
During the 2023 season, Browning stepped in as the starter for the injured Burrow and went 4-3, throwing 12 touchdown passes to seven interceptions while completing more than 70% of his passes. He went 0-2 against the Steelers that season, throwing four interceptions in two games.
He’ll get the start in Week 3 against the Brian Flores-led Minnesota Vikings defense and will get his first look at the Steelers in Week 7 on Thursday Night Football.
With Browning starting for the Bengals, it will mark a stretch in which the Steelers are set to face backup quarterbacks in the ensuing weeks. In Week 4 in Dublin, the Steelers will face Vikings backup quarterback Carson Wentz with J.J. McCarthy sidelined with a high-ankle sprain.
