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Joe Burrow Was in Total Control With Unique Way of Running Clock vs. Ravens

Star QB announced his return with a convincing victory over rival.

Kyle Koster

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow was on top of the clock situation on Thursday night.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow was on top of the clock situation on Thursday night. / Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images
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The Bengals thumped the Ravens, 32–14, to close out the NFL’s Thanksgiving triple-header. Joe Burrow’s return predictably proved to be a total game-changer as the quarterback outplayed Lamar Jackson and threw the AFC North into further disarray.

Burrow connected on 24-of-46 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns in the win and showed that his time-management skills were not dulled by an extended stint on the injured list. With the Bengals holding a 29–14 lead and only a handful of minutes left in the fourth quarter, Burrow ensured that each and every second on the play clock was used by being extremely communicative to his offense.

“We’ve got a lot of time here,” Burrow could be heard saying to his unit. Then he provided center Ted Karras with a countdown clock for the snap.

This bit of leadership drew a chuckle from the NBC booth of Mike Tirico and Jason Garrett. And it was a reminder that Burrow is locked-in after returning from a brutal case of turf toe that required surgery.

With the AFC North completely up for grabs and no team seemingly capable of playing anything over .500 ball, Cincinnati is still technically alive for the division. It’s going to take winning out but they did look like a completely different team with Burrow running the show.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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