CINCINNATI — Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow sat at his locker, legs outstretched, staring ahead in a room that had mostly emptied.
If he was trying to make sense of what happened in Cincinnati's season opener, he wasn't alone. The Bengals endured a day that featured several turnovers, an upended kicking game and a rocky outing in a 23-20 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In Cincinnati's first game since Super Bowl LVI, Burrow committed five turnovers, the Bengals missed two chances to win the game and were left with a sour result. «We had our chances,» Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. «To lose the turnover battle five to nothing, to have kick operations ruined on two kicks that both would have won the game, is disheartening in that way.» Chris Boswell's 53-yard field goal at the end of overtime allowed the Steelers to escape with a win and snap a three-game losing streak against their AFC North rivals.
Burrow threw a career-high four interceptions and lost a fumble in the team's loss. He was also sacked six times. And yet, the Bengals still were in a position to pull off an improbable win. «Obviously, you don't want to throw four picks,» Burrow said. «But I never panicked.