Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow sat down in a recent interview with MensHealth<\/strong><\/a>, talking about the upcoming season.<\/p>\n Here in New England, the date that clearly looms large on the Patriots 2024 schedule<\/strong><\/a> is the team’s week one match-up out in Cincinnati against Burrow and the Bengals, with some key questions still remaining heading into training camp.<\/p>\n Burrow’s a player who has definitely given them a tough time in the past, and it sounds like he’s been working hard this offseason to get stronger ahead of training camp.\u00a0 He said this offseason he’s put on weight, with the hope of seeing that additional bulk hopefully providing him some added durability after he’s taken his fair share of hits in his short time in the league.<\/p>\n \u201cI put on 10 or 15 pounds since last season, which I\u2019m hoping helps my body make it through the year. That\u2019s the goal,\u201d the 6’4″ QB out of LSU said during the interview. \u201cIt\u2019s all about making sure my body is in tip-top shape, ready to go for Sundays.\u201d<\/p>\n Burrow said his diet and hydration routine has been a big part of his offseason, saying that he’s drinking “five or six” bottles of water a day, while also going through his workouts with resistance bands and working on his core.\u00a0 He’s got a routine down when it comes to the exercises he feels helps his throwing motion, which is what he’s committed himself to.<\/p>\n “As far as throwing, [those exercises] would be anti-rotation of the core to Pallof press, Pallof walkouts, core stabilization with bands, Keiser twists, Russian twists\u2014anything core-related,” said Burrow. “Then glutes. So: Banded walkouts, hamstring walkouts. That whole midsection torso area is our main focus.”<\/p>\n “It changes each week. Sometimes it\u2019s high volume, low weight, sometimes it\u2019s high weight, low volume. Before practice, I\u2019m making sure to get my core activated just with very light weight, low reps. Making sure that\u2019s it ready to go and contributed to the throwing motion that I need.”<\/p>\n As for his expectations for this season, he said he’s excited about what his club might be able to accomplish this year, given their roster.<\/p>\n “I\u2019m really excited about our squad this year,” said Burrow.\u00a0 “I think we\u2019re as deep as we ever been. My expectations are always to go out and win every game that we can. You\u2019re not going to go out and be 17-0, but you\u2019re going to go out and compete in every game and you\u2019re going to get better throughout the season.”<\/p>\n “My goal week-to-week and day-to-day is to always just improve. If we continue improving, we\u2019re going to be where we want to be by the end of the year.”<\/p>\n With an offense that features J’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, it will certainly be a tough challenge for the New England Patriots<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 Most fans likely remember the previous meeting in 2022<\/strong><\/a>, which came on Christmas Eve and saw the Bengals jump out to a massive 22-0 deficit, with New England outscoring Cincinnati 18-0 in the second half before coming up short in a 22-18 loss at Gillette Stadium.<\/p>\n Overall, Burrow completed 40-of-52 (76.9%) for 375 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.\u00a0 In that game, his two key targets had plenty of success. Higgins amassed 128 yards on 8 receptions, while Chase hauled in 79 yards on 8 catches of his own.<\/p>\n But it was definitely a tale of two halves for Burrow.\u00a0 He completed 28-of-36 (77.8%) for 284 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in the first half.\u00a0 He was also 6-of-7 (85.7%) on third down for 71 yards and a touchdown over that span.<\/p>\n In the second half, New England’s defense shut him down.\u00a0 They held him to 12-of-16 (75%) for 91 yards, including just 1-of-4 for -1 yard on third down and an interception.<\/p>\n It’s clear massive changes were made in the locker room at halftime and Bill Belichick, as he has so many times over the years, likely played a key role there.<\/p>\n He’s obviously not here anymore, which as WEEI’s Andy Hart pointed out on NBC Sports Boston Wednesday night, remains a key question mark heading into the season.<\/p>\n “It was a strength for the team, so we’re just going to ignore the fact he was there?” said Hart<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 “And I don’t think he played nearly as key a role recently as he did maybe earlier in his tenure, but he’s still there.\u00a0 He’s still the ‘executive producer’ to say like, ‘That seems terrible, why don’t we reshoot that?\u00a0 Why don’t we do that differently?\u00a0 So you lose that.\u00a0 I think that is a concern for\u00a0 Jerod Mayo and DeMarcus Covington.”<\/p>\n Those are all valid points, especially not knowing how much input those guys had in real-time in recent years.<\/p>\n For now, that Week 1 date is what they’ll be working toward, and one would have to hope both Mayo and Covington will be able to ensure things will at least be a little more even this time around as the club tries to get off to a good start in 2024.<\/p>\n NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has been fairly quiet since a jury found that the league violated antitrust laws, awarding a massive $4.7 billion judgment that will likely exceed $14 billion for their Sunday Ticket <\/em>service.<\/em><\/p>\n In an interview with CNBC, Goodell said the league disagrees with the verdict and remains committed to fighting it “all the way” through the legal system.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, we obviously disagree with the jury verdict and we are committed obviously to following the legal process,\u201d Goodell told CNBC, via ProFootballTalk.com<\/strong><\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s a long process. We\u2019re aware of that, but we feel very strongly about our position, our policies, particularly on media, that we make our — our sport available to the broadest possible audience. Sunday Ticket is just a complimentary product. So we\u2019re committed to following the litigation, all the way and making sure that we get this right.\u201d<\/p>\n One interesting aspect that was mentioned by Twitter user Eriq Gardner, who is a legal analyst and contributing writer for Puck.news, was that there’s one critical part of this process that is going to be a massive obstacle the league still faces as it tries to take the verdict through the appeal process.<\/p>\n “There’s a crucial aspect being overlooked: Everyone’s talking about how the case will meander through the appellate system,” writes Gardner<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 “But the NFL will probably need to post a substantial bond – as much as $14 billion – to halt collection efforts pending the appeal.\u00a0 How is this cash raised?\u00a0 Is the burden shared equally among owners?\u00a0 What impact would this have on the NFL’s revenue sharing with players, or on next year’s salary cap?\u00a0 I seriously have no idea, but these are\u00a0huge<\/em> issues.”<\/p>\n For now, Goodell may have emphasized their commitment to keep fighting with this litigation, but it sounds like they face a tough battle. As Gardner points out, it sounds like it’s a somewhat risky endeavor given the money at stake, and it’s a gamble the league – regardless of how much money it has – certainly can’t afford to lose.<\/p>\n Dov Kleiman broke down the cost to watch every NFL game this year, taking a look at the various services the league currently has an agreement with and breaking the costs down monthly.<\/p>\n He has the following:<\/p>\n The cost to watch every NFL game this year pic.twitter.com\/22G4gAzPRR<\/a><\/p>\n — Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) July 11, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Photo-Roger-Goodell-LOASE-450x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\nGoodell Speaks Out on Verdict<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Massive Crackdown Coming on Illegal Streaming?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n