Joe Burrow hasn’t had anything resembling a normal offseason.
He also has nothing standing in the way of the Bengals’ starting quarterback job.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor said as much Wednesday, saying he was confident in the No. 1 overall pick’s ability to acclimate despite the lack of offseason work because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We took him because we have high expectations for Joe,” Taylor said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s official website. “From everything I know of him and seen of him, he’s got high expectations for himself.
“He’s going to do everything he can to put himself in a situation to be successful. I trust that. I think when you guys get a chance to talk to him you’ll feel the same way.”
Of course, it doesn’t take a long look at the depth chart to realize this was obvious. After ditching Andy Dalton, the Bengals had 2019 fourth-rounder Ryan Finley and former undrafted Jacob Dolegala on the roster, so there wasn’t anyone with even a claim to being a temporary placeholder.
Taylor did suggest there’s a chance they might add a veteran, but that wouldn’t change the fact they’re getting Burrow ready to start against the Chargers on Sept. 13.