CINCINNATI — A new contract "comes when it comes," Joe Burrow said during his weekly press conference Wednesday afternoon.
Bengals fans have been waiting for news on a long-term contract extension all offseason, but a deal still isn't done. Burrow doesn't seem worried, though.
"That's the last thing I'm thinking about," Burrow said. "I'm worried about beating the Browns right now."
Burrow said he expects to play Sunday in Cleveland after fully participating in practice Wednesday. He called the last six weeks "boring" as he worked to get back on the field.
"I'm ready to go, I think," he said. "I mean, we're gonna see how these next couple of days play out because you never know with these things, but I'm expecting to play."
The 26-year-old called his injury a muscle strain, saying he's had both good days and bad days since first getting carted off the field during practice in late July. Still, Burrow said he feels like he's probably in the best shape he's been in ahead of a season opener.
"I was able to maintain lifting through the whole process, so I'm in great shape, as good of shape as I've been in heading into Week 1," Burrow said.
As the season nears, Burrow said there's no expiration date on contract negotiations and once again expressed his desire to stay in Cincinnati for as long as possible.
"This is where I want to be my whole career, we're working towards making that happen," Burrow said. "You've seen what the front office has done and what Zac (Taylor) has done in their time here, and I'm a small part of that and I'm excited to be a part of that."
For now, Burrow said he's focused on making sure he and his teammates are in the best position possible this season.
"I love playing football, I work really hard to put myself in a really good position to go out and be successful on Sundays ... I'm not going to let the business side of things take that away from me," said Burrow.
