The Cincinnati Bengals went looking for some quality depth after a long-term injury to Joe Burrow, and found it in a former Buffalo Bills quarterback.
Burrow was hurt in his team’s 31-27 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, suffering turf toe that will require surgery and a recovery time of roughly three months. While the Bengals plan to stick with Jake Browning after he led the team to a win over the Jaguars, the team added an insurance policy in the form of Mike White.
Former Bills Quarterback Finds New Home
The Bills signed White last season and pitted him against Mitch Trubisky this summer in a battle for the No. 2 job behind Josh Allen. Trubisky ended up keeping the job, leading the Bills to release White at the final roster cutdown and keep Shane Buechele as their practice squad quarterback.
White had remained a free agent until this week, when he signed with Cincinnati’s practice squad. The Bengals also added quarterback Sean Clifford.
Clifford could have the advantage over White should the Bengals need to call up help from the practice squad. As Chris Bengel of CBS Sports noted, Cincinnati is very familiar with Clifford despite his lack of NFL experience.
“Clifford spent the past two seasons on Green Bay’s active roster and practice squad before being released by the team during final roster cuts this season,” Bengel wrote. “He has only completed one career NFL pass, which came in 2023 in relief of Jordan Love.
“The Bengals are quite familiar with Clifford’s resume. Clifford worked out for the Bengals prior to the 2023 NFL Draft and did attend nearby St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati.”
White has 15 NFL appearances and seven starts, completing 61.4% of his passes for 2,247 yards with nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He appeared in one game for the Bills last season, going 3-for-11 for 28 yards in a season finale.
Trubisky has already seen action this season, coming in while Josh Allen was being treated for a bloody nose and completing a key third-down pass.
Mike White May Not See the Field
It could be a difficult task for White to climb the depth chart enough to see playing time in Cincinnati. He remains behind backup Brett Rypien, while the coaching staff sounds confident in sticking with Browning.