NFL Rumors: XFL's AJ McCarron, Bengals Agree to Contract amid Joe Burrow's Injury

As Joe Burrow's status for Week 3 remains up in the air, the Cincinnati Bengals brought in a familiar face.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, AJ McCarron—who previously spent three seasons in Cincinnati—agreed to a contract to join the Bengals' practice squad.

McCarron played for the St. Louis BattleHawks in the XFL earlier this year. He last played in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons during the 2021 season before suffering a torn ACL in a preseason game against the Miami Dolphins.

Burrow reaggravated his calf injury during the Bengals' final offensive possession in their Week 2 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Since the Bengals don't play until Monday night, Burrow's status for Week 3 is still up in the air. Mike Petraglia of the Jungle Roar Pod noted Burrow was "running and doing full warmup with high energy" during Saturday's practice session.

This is at least an indication of progress for Burrow. He didn't participate in their first practice on Thursday and was limited on Friday, per the team's official injury report.

Jake Browning, whose only snap in an NFL game was a kneel down to end last week's loss, is the only other quarterback currently on Cincinnati's roster. Reid Sinnett was signed to the practice squad on Friday after Will Grier left to sign with the New England Patriots.

McCarron began his NFL career with the Bengals. He was a fifth-round draft pick out of Alabama in 2014 and started three games during the 2015 season.

Cincinnati traded McCarron to the Cleveland Browns midway through the 2017 campaign. He also spent time with the Oakland Raiders and Houston Texans.

In nine starts with the BattleHawks this spring, McCarron led the league in touchdown passes (24) and finished second in passing yards (2,150).

Despite finishing in a tie for the second-best record in the league (7-3), St. Louis missed the playoffs in a tiebreaker with the Seattle Sea Dragons.

The Bengals will host the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football in a rematch of Super Bowl 56.