Bengals’ Jermaine Burton Won’t Travel for Steelers Game After Coach’s Decision

The Cincinnati Bengals will be down a receiver as they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in a must-win contest on Saturday.

Per ESPN’s Ben Baby, rookie receiver Jermaine Burton won’t travel with the team to Pittsburgh because of a coach’s decision.

This will be the second time this season Burton is inactive because of a coach’s decision. The third-round pick out of Alabama missed the Bengals’ Nov. 3 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders after missing a walkthrough the Saturday before the game.

Head coach Zac Taylor said the decision to bench Burton in November was a “necessary step.”

“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, per the Associated Press’ Mitch Stacy.

“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.”

It’s unclear why Taylor decided to bench Burton this week, but it could mean his season is over if Cincinnati doesn’t reach the postseason.

Burton has had a disappointing start to his career, totaling just four receptions for 107 yards in 14 games. He has not had a ball thrown his way since Nov. 17 when had one reception on four targets against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Bengals, who head into the matchup with the Steelers at 8-8 on the year, need a few things to happen to reach the playoffs. They’ll first need to win against Pittsburgh and from there would need the Miami Dolphins to lose to the New York Jets and the Denver Broncos to lose to the Kansas City Chiefs.