Mike North Breaks Silence on Joe Burrow’s Controversial Prime-Time Baltimore Complaint—Here’s Why He Calls It “Fair”

Joe Burrow’s 2025 schedule grievances are as clear as a crisp autumn Sunday—but hey, who can blame him? The Bengals superstar had two key asks: a shot at an international game and a break from those late-night battles near Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Spoiler alert: neither came through. The Bengals will skip the global stage this year, and yes, they’re hitting the Baltimore primetime circus for the fourth consecutive season. Talk about déjà vu! Burrow’s plea for a Cincinnati night game? Falling on deaf ears—for now. The NFL’s Mike North openly acknowledges the mounting frustration, admitting even he would gladly erase this recurring Thursday-night road trip if he could. But the fiery rivalry demands spotlight treatment, meaning Bengals fans will have another chance to disrupt Baltimore’s Thanksgiving traditions. With the Ravens holding the upper hand on recent games, this 2025 rematch is shaping up as a heated chapter in a growing saga. Buckle up—it’s gonna be a wild ride. LEARN MORE.

NFL V.P. of broadcast planning & scheduling Mike North doesn’t take issue with the criticism.It’s also the third straight year the Bengals visit the Ravens on a Thursday night, after playing on the prior Sunday.“It’s fair,” North told Geoff Hobson of the team’s official website. “It’s not a one-or-two years sort of a league where you fix every problem every other year or every two years. Once you start getting to the same thing three years in a row, four, or five years in a row, whether it’s a short week Thursday on the road or opening on the road.”Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow had two bones to pick about the 2025 schedule: (1) he wanted to play a game overseas; and (2) he didn’t want another night game near the Inner Harbor.North explained that the rivalry nevertheless required one of the games to be in primetime.

Burrow’s wish list came up empty. The Bengals don’t play in one of the seven international games, and the Bengals play a prime-time road game against the Ravens in Baltimore, again.“Playing in Baltimore for the fourth straight year in prime time isn’t ideal,” Burrow said this week. “Maybe we can get one of those in Cincinnati. Please.”“I’m sure Bengals fans would have preferred it in Cincinnati, but it should be fun for you guys to ruin Baltimore’s Thanksgiving,” North said.Baltimore has won four in a row against the Bengals, and three in a row against Cincinnati at home. The rematch comes only two weeks later, at 1:00 p.m. ET on the Sunday of Week 15.North said that if he could have one game to change on the schedule, he’d “wave a magic wand” and remove the third straight short-week trip by the Bengals to Baltimore for a Thanksgiving night game.