
Zac Taylor, the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Senior Bowl are overreaching in trying to wrangle Joe Burrow to play in what is essentially a meaningless game. The game in Mobile, Alabama typically allows players with a lesser national profile to get some exposure that they desperately need on a very good and worthwhile platform. A Heisman Trophy winner like Burrow who will be playing in the National Championship Game need not attend.
It’s entirely understandable that Taylor would like a week to get to know the player who could be in a Cincinnati Bengals uniform for the foreseeable future. It would be an extraordinarily rare treat to have a significant jumpstart with the player most in the NFL world know the organization will probably draft.
All that said, it’s Burrow who has the most to lose. Whether due to an injury, a bad game, or any number of circumstances that could result in him NOT being the first overall pick.
Despite finishing 2-14, the Bengals have a wealth of good fortune ahead of them. They don’t just have the top pick in the upcoming draft, but an early look at players via their participation in the Senior Bowl, the players they will also see at the NFL Combine and free agency and trade opportunities with players like A.J. Green and even Andy Dalton. Joe Burrow simply doesn’t need the Senior Bowl nearly as much as the Bengals do.