A photo showing Cincinnati Bengals star Jermaine Burton at a local casino has gone viral after the rookie receiver was a healthy scratch Sunday amid reports he missed the team’s final walkthrough a day earlier.
There isn’t much context for the photo, which shows Burton playing a slot machine at the city’s Hard Rock Casino. Neither a Bengals spokeswoman nor Burton’s agent immediately responded to DailyMail.com’s inquiry about when the photo was taken.
Obviously it would reflect poorly on Burton if it were revealed the photo was taken in the early hours of Saturday morning, when the team was scheduled for its final walkthrough before beating the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
Burton was being counted on heavily last week due to star receiver Tee Higgins’ lingering quad injury.
Speaking to reporters after Sunday’s win, Taylor did not reveal too much other than saying the benching was a ‘necessary step.’
A photo showing Cincinnati Bengals star Jermaine Burton at a local casino has gone viral after the rookie receiver was a healthy scratch Sunday
Burton was previously scratched on October 27, but Sunday’s absence was more noticeable
‘We just got to handle our business the right way, and so I can sit here and say it was a difficult decision to make him inactive, but it was absolutely the right decision with all the information we had,’ Taylor said after the Bengals’ 41-24 victory.
‘He’s a guy who’s going to have, I think, a really good career here, and we’re going to support him. And he wants to help us win and do things the right way.’
Burton did attend Sunday’s game, where he was seen wearing pajama bottoms. He also appeared to have a tense exchange with quarterback Joe Burrow, who was visibly annoyed during and after the Bengals improved to 4-5 on the season.
‘Get your f***ing bodies right, get your minds right,’ Burrow hollered at teammates in the locker room, referring to Thursday’s game with rival Baltimore. ‘It’s a big one on Thursday.’
Taylor said Burton is expected to practice this week and play Thursday night in Baltimore.
There had been rumors of character concerns about Burton as he entered the NFL.
Burton was being counted on Sunday to help carry the load without injured Tee Higgins
During his time at Alabama, Burton was accused of striking a female fan after the Crimson Tide fell to the Tennessee Volunteers. Then-Alabama coach Nick Saban told reports that Burton’s biggest issue was ’emotional maturity.’
Burrow had been largely complimentary of Burton despite his issues.
‘I think Jermaine is going to be a great player he’s just got to do the little things right,’ Burrow said.
Burton began his college career at Georgia before transferring to Alabama, where he won a national title in 2021.
The Bengals drafted him in the third round of last April’s NFL Draft. He has just two catches over seven NFL games, although both were good for more than 40 yards.
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