Joe Burrow Defends Jonah Williams’ Commitment to The Team

Following the signing of Orlando Brown as the Bengals’ new left tackle, Jonah Williams, who previously held that position, did not participate in the majority of the team’s offseason program, but he did attend mandatory minicamp.

Williams allegedly asked to be traded, but Cincinnati did not do so. Williams is expected to play right tackle, with La’el Collins sidelined indefinitely due to a ruptured ACL sustained late in the 2022 season.

During minicamp, Williams said he’s “happy to be a contributor on a team where I have so many great teammates.” So, he ostensibly got over whatever issues he had with the team.

That’s good news for quarterback Joe Burrow, who said it was good to have Williams back.

“Whenever guys have business going on it’s always nice to get them back around the guys and see their face,” Burrow said last week, via James Rapien of SI.com. “We all know how hard Jonah works, the work he puts in to put his best foot forward on Sundays. I don’t think that will affect his play at all.”

Williams, the 11th overall choice in the 2019 draft, has been the Bengals’ starting left tackle since 2020 after recovering from a ruptured labrum that held him out of his rookie season. Since his rookie year at Alabama, he has not played right tackle.