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NFL NFL Week 15 Joe Burrow's Sunday couldn't have gone much worse, as the Bengals were eliminated from the playoffs for the third consecutive season. Jason Miller / Getty Images (Editor’s note: This is excerpted from Mike Sando’s Pick Six of Dec. 15, 2025. ) Alarm bells rang last week when Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow sounded like he was contemplating retirement or a change of address. Advertisement “If I want to keep doing this, I have to have fun doing it, ” the Bengals’ franchise QB said. “I’ve been through a lot, and if it’s not fun, then what am I doing it for? ” If Burrow felt that down following a highly entertaining 39-34 defeat at Buffalo, how would he feel after falling 24-0 at home against Baltimore on Sunday? “There is not a team in the NFL that would have won today if I was the quarterback, ” Burrow said, taking ownership for a poor performance. The Bengals’ struggles over the past two seasons, coupled with other things Burrow has said, have driven comparisons to Carson Palmer’s falling out with the franchise in 2009. Palmer, frustrated with the organization, forced a trade. As the chart below shows, Burrow is nearing the point in his career where Palmer wanted out. Three big differences: Burrow signed a five-year, $275 million deal with the Bengals, so he's fulfilled financially; Cincy has reached a Super Bowl with Burrow, who therefore knows a championship is possible; and Burrow, unlike Palmer, went to high school in Ohio. "If Joe Burrow, your hometown guy, gives up on you, that is a different stake in the heart of your franchise, " an exec from another team said. Comparing Burrow to Andrew Luck, who shockingly retired before the 2019 season at Burrow's current age (29), feels relevant to the extent that Burrow's frustrations stem from surgeries on his knee, wrist and toe, plus other less serious injuries. Burrow, like Luck, also has reason to question how his team has built its offensive line. The similarities stop there. "Burrow doesn't strike me as Luck, where he is going to disappear and go bird watching or serve on a board if he does not play football, " the exec added. "That said, Burrow's comments definitely caught my attention. That is an organization I trust the least to figure it out. " Advertisement Burrow, unlike Mahomes, is healthy. Happy? How could anyone be happy with a third consecutive lost season? Where Burrow takes his commentary from here, especially in the offseason, will be telling. He hasn't held back in the past. "(Owner) Mike Brown is not letting Joe Burrow walk out the door, " the exec said. "That is what makes Burrow's comments so interesting. How ugly does this get? Because this is the one franchise that doesn't care at all about it looking ugly, especially after getting their stadium deal. " Mike Sando joined The Athletic in 2019 as an NFL senior writer after 12 years with ESPN. He is a selector for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, an officer for the Pro Football Writers of America and has covered every non-pandemic Super Bowl since the 1998 season. Follow Mike on Twitter @Sando NFL