Joe Burrow: I’m not going to play like that very often

[Who Dey]

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Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow turned his ankle on a hit by Steelers linebacker Bud Dupree late in the first half on Sunday and it seemed to be a turning point in his game.

Burrow was 15-of-24 for 170 yards before that play and 6-of-16 for 33 yards the rest of the way. Burrow said after the 36-10 loss that he never considered leaving the game because he’s “not a quitter,” but admitted that he was “terrible” in the second half of the game.

It’s the kind of outing that could shake the confidence of some players, but Burrow didn’t sound like he was doubting himself after a rough afternoon.

“You hear me talk and I’m not too down in the dumps because I know I’m not going to play like that very often. . . . I was talking on the sideline, and I think we’re in that game if I don’t suck in the second half and I’m not going to suck a lot,” Burrow said, via the team’s website. “We’re going to come back to work every day, and I’m excited to go back to practice on Wednesday and start getting these kinks worked out and move on to Washington.”

Rookie seasons feature growing pains and Sunday’s game was a reminder that Burrow will have to navigate them to continue developing into the quarterback the Bengals believe he can be.