Bengals QB Joe Burrow thinks team health due to no nightlife

While they will be happy to be joint leaders in the AFC North, the Bengals have done something few other teams have, stay healthy during a pandemic.

No Party. No covid-19: Bengals Joe Burrow

Sometimes boring can be good, or at least that's the notion put forward by Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Burrow believes that having limited nightlife options in the city has helped the team maintain a low number of covid-19 while positive tests have continued to rise steadily across the entire league in recent weeks. "Fortunately, there's not a ton to do in Cincinnati," Burrow said Wednesday. "Nobody is going out to clubs and bars and getting COVID every weekend. But we've been healthy." At the moment the Bengals have just one player on the covid-19 list, starting cornerback Chidobe Awuzie.

Incidentally the lack of attractions in downtown Cincinnati has not gone unnoticed by local officials. Over the last ten years, the area between the Bengals' Paul Brown Stadium and the Cincinnati Reds' Great American Ball Park known as "The Banks" has seen significant development. In March this year, the city officially authorized the the carrying of open containers of alcohol on the street in an effort to increase pedestrian traffic in the area.

What is the situation in the NFL now?

With the increase in cases recently along with the resulting logistical problems, the league has been forced to shift games on the calendar. The Cleveland Browns saw their game against the Las Vegas Raiders moved from Saturday to Monday, while two other Week 15 games - Seattle Seahawks vs Los Angeles Rams and the WFT vs Philadelphia Eagles - were moved from Sunday to Tuesday.

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It should be said that as the season has worn on, the Bengals have been extremely careful with any player who showed signs of illness. When the NFL sent a league wide memo last week announcing stricter covid-19 protocols, it was essentially business as usual for Cincinnati as they were already in the practice of holding players out for precautionary reasons. "We're still a healthy team, which not a lot of people can't say at this point of the season," Burrow said. "We've been lucky as far as injuries and COVID."

How are the Bengals doing?

As it stands the Bengals can also feel happy about the fact that they sit atop the AFC North with a record of 8-6. They are, however, tied for the lead with the Baltimore Ravens who they actually play this weekend in Cincinnati. Should they win, the Bengals would have a clean sweep over the Ravens this season.