Cincinnati Bengals star QB Burrow returns to practice

The Cincinnati Bengals got Joe Burrow back on the practice field Wednesday for the first time since the star quarterback injured his right calf early in training camp.

Burrow had been sidelined since straining his calf on a scramble during a July 27 practice. The 2022 Pro Bowl selection took part in throwing drills Wednesday without the compression sleeve on his lower right leg that he had been wearing during his recovery period.

"It was really great to have him back out there," Bengals center Ted Karras told reporters afterward. "He's the leader of this team and I'm just really happy he's back."

Burrow's return bodes well for his chances of being ready for Cincinnati's season opener against the AFC North rival Cleveland Browns on Sept. 10.

The 2020 No. 1 overall pick had his rookie campaign cut short after 10 games by a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, but has not missed a game due to injury over the last two seasons while leading the Bengals to the playoffs both years.

Burrow delivered a breakout 2021 season in which he threw for a franchise-record 4,611 yards and 34 touchdowns and helped the Bengals to their first Super Bowl appearance since 1988. The 2019 Heisman Trophy winner set another team record with 35 touchdown passes in 2022 while compiling 4,475 passing yards and completing 68.3 per cent of his throws. 

"Joe has a supreme command of the operational aspect of our offence, (so) it is ratched up a little bit," Karras said of Wednesday's practice. "Not that we're not going hard with anyone else out there, but when [number] nine's back there you can feel the difference."

Cincinnati finished 12-4 last season to capture its second straight AFC North title before again reaching the conference title game, which the Bengals lost 23-20 to the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.