It seemed apparent Joe Burrow would be taking over as the starting quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals when the team took him at No. 1 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, and became even more evident when the team released Andy Dalton earlier this offseason.
The Bengals have plenty of room for improvement on the offense and as a team in general, and Burrow could be a huge factor in the turnaround.
He had an unprecedented season for a college football quarterback, breaking almost too many records to count, bringing home the Heisman Trophy and guiding his team through an undefeated season that was finished out by a national championship victory.
Evan McPhillips of Pro Football Focus recently pointed out one interesting stat that suggests even as a rookie, Burrow could take the Bengals to a new level.
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Dalton posted the second-highest uncatchable pass rate last year, according to the network, behind just Buffalo Bills signal-caller Josh Allen.
In comparison, Burrow was the highest-graded quarterback of the PFF college era.
Dalton was tied for the 2nd-highest uncatchable pass rate last season, failing to consistently give his WRs opportunities to make plays on the ball.
Going from Dalton to Burrow, the highest-graded QB of the @PFF college era, will be a huge plus for a talented receiver group. https://t.co/usCaEFygOu
— Evan McPhillips (@emcphil) July 11, 2020
Of course, this is going to Burrow’s first year, and he should be expected to struggle with the same challenges nearly all rookies face when they make their transition to the NFL.
The jump he has to make shouldn’t be discounted, but given Burrow’s accomplishments, the Bengals should have confidence his talents will translate well and at a fast pace to the big leagues.
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