Joe Burrow will have plenty to be thankful for this week.
The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback is expected to return to the field this U.S. Thanksgiving Thursday against the Baltimore Ravens, head coach Zac Taylor said on Monday.
Burrow has been out since Week 2 with a Grade 3 turf toe injury that required surgery.
He also hinted on social media that his return is imminent.
Veteran Joe Flacco stepped into the starting quarterback role after a trade from the Cleveland Browns in early October, helping to stabilize the Bengals for a period in Burrow's absence.
However, Flacco's Bengals have lost four straight games to fall to 3-8 and tied for last in the AFC North.
Cincinnati dropped a 26-20 decision to the AFC-leading New England Patriots on Sunday.
Burrow threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns before going down with injury.
He returned to practice in a limited capacity two weeks ago, and then he began doing 11-on-11 drills in practice last week.
As Burrow has been working to return as soon as possible, Taylor previously said that he has a role in protecting Burrow from himself.
“I view it as very important,” Taylor said. “I have to take into account what I think is best for him. He’s coming back off an injury. He’s been out for a long time. I know he’s of the right mindset and has done everything physically, and then I have to take into account what’s the best thing for him, what’s the best thing for our team and make the soundest decision.”
Taylor said that if Burrow started, there wouldn’t be many guardrails.
Burrow has historically struggled in Week 1, and this would be another scenario where he's coming back to play following a long break.
Taylor said that he views Burrow's mid-season return as a much different experience than a Week 1 game, and he'll be comfortable letting Burrow play how he needs to play to win whenever Burrow is back in the lineup.
“The whole point is you’re putting him in there when you feel like he’s fully ready to go and can handle the full game load,” Taylor said. “Because you never know what situation is gonna come up in a game or put you in a situation where your quarterback’s got to be able to operate. So I think that all factors into the decision.”
--with files from The Associated Press
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