Tag: Joe Burrow Cincinnati Bengals

Bold Predictions for 2021 NFL Season: Burrow leads Bengals to the Playoffs

If the Bengals can outpace the Pittsburgh Steelers, then a wildcard birth is most certainly on the table for Burrow and his squad.

It’s that time of year once again. One of my favorite aspects of the offseason is analyzing team rosters as well as breaking down individual team schedules to better understand what each team could accomplish, or not accomplish, this season.

It’s the time of year when we get to make bold predictions about the upcoming 2021 NFL season.

One of the bold predictions I like is Joe Burrow leading the Cincinnati Bengals to a playoff birth.

How could this happen? It’s actually not that unrealistic.

If the Bengals can outpace the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of their division rivals, then a wildcard birth is most certainly on the table for Burrow and his team.

Burrow took the field for the first time in a long time at Bengals OTA workouts this week. He admitted he didn’t feel 100% just yet, but he definetly looked comfortable out there.

I’m willing to bet that Burrow will hit the ground running with his old LSU teammate Ja’Marr Chase. That connection alone will add yet another extremely dangerous element to an already underrated bengals offensive unit.  Burrow and Chase shared a special connection back in 2019 that helped LSU win a national championship.

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Before suffering that season-ending injury last November, Burrow was buidling a nice rapport with wide receivers Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Inserting Ja’Marr Chase into the offense will not only help Burrow in a huge way, it’ll help the receivers lining up alongside him.

Joe Mixon is a duel threat running back who fits the mold of what both Burrow like as well as Zac Taylors offensive scheme. The versatility of this offensive unit will be a lot of fun to watch.

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The arrow is pointing up in Cincinnati, and I cannot say the same about the Pittsburgh Steelers.

There are far more questions than answers when looking at both the Steelers roster as well as their schedule.

If Burrow and his Bengals can get off to a hot start in 2021, look out.

Could Joe Burrow win Comeback Player of the Year?

Joe Burrow has the third-best odds (+750) to win Comeback Player of the Year, behind only Dak Prescott (+250) and Saquon Barkley (+600).

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is still recovering from a devastating knee injury that he suffered last November. The 24-year-old tore both his left ACL and MCL. He underwent knee surgery in December and has been recovering and rehabbing ever since.

The devastating injury not only ended his promising rookie campaign – it also drastically changed his entire offseason.

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Burrow made his first appearance during Bengals OTA’s and looked pretty sharp all things considered. Both Burrow and team doctors believe that he will being ready for week one of the 2021 season, the home opener against the Minnesota Vikings.

Most of the oddsmakers believe the former No. 1 overall pick is going to bounce back.

Burrow has the third-best odds (+750) to win Comeback Player of the Year according to BetOnline. Only Dak Prescott (+250) and Saquon Barkley (+600) have better odds, as things currently stand.

Before suffering that season-ending injury, Burrow showed a great rapport with wide receivers Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Add the fifth overall pick and former teammate Ja’Marr Chase to this mix will only help Burrow.

Include running back Joe Mixon and you have a group of offensive skill players that quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers would salivate for.

I’m not a betting expert, but I would definitely bet my money on Joe Burrow to have a huge comeback year and win the Comeback Player of the Year award.

 

2020 NFL Draft: 4 Reasons Why Cincinnati Should Not Take Joe Burrow 1st Overall

Why do teams need to avoid taking a quarterback early, much less No. 1 overall? NFL draft history isn’t kind.

Why do teams need to avoid taking a quarterback early, much less No. 1 overall? NFL draft history isn’t on the side of teams picking in the top ten.

2020 NFL Draft: Why Cincinnati Should Not Take Joe Burrow No. 1

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CFN 2020 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings
from the college perspective …
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | OG & C
DE | DT | LB | CB | Safeties

It’s not about Joe Burrow … sort of.

He’s a great guy, a great story, and he should be a terrific pro who makes a whole lot of money and has a whole lot of success at the next level. But if the Bengals want to win a Super Bowl, going with Burrow – or any quarterback – is asking to buck a historically brutal trend.

To be fair to Cincinnati – and especially to Burrow – it’s not just about the top pick. Taking any quarterback in the top ten is thumbing your nose at the NFL Draft gods, at least if you want to win a Super Bowl.

So what’s wrong with taking Burrow with the No. 1 overall selection?

Okay, it is about him … sort of.

Here are four reasons – from valid to off-the-rails – why Cincinnati shouldn’t take a quarterback No. 1, starting with …

CFN in 60: Why You Don’t Take A QB Early

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Tools

Burrow’s 2019 numbers at LSU were staggering.

76% for 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns, six interceptions, one SEC Championship, one Heisman, one national title, and the greatest single season overall by any quarterback in the history of college football.

There’s no faking that, and there was nothing fluky about his leadership, his swagger, and the way he turned into the pitch-perfect spokesman for a team, a school, and for his region in Ohio.

Forget that he went from being just okay in 2018 to off-the-charts a year later. Sometimes college quarterbacks figure it out, and sometimes they mature as a player. Their body types kick in, the game slows down to a crawl, and it all comes together at once.

But that was college football.

CFN Podcast: The problem taking a QB early
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Was it the scheme? All of a sudden, LSU’s offense went bonkers thanks to the right coaching – Joe Brady parlayed his job as the passing game coordinator to the Carolina Panther offensive coordinator gig – the NFL talent at receiver, and Burrow being the right guy to run it all. However …

There’s one glaring difference between Burrow and almost every quarterback selected No. 1 overall since Terry Baker was picked by the Rams in 1963.

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The arm. It’s okay, but it’s a limiting factor to his next-level game, and it’s nowhere near No. 1 overall pick-worthy.

Alex Smith didn’t have a howitzer, but he was a bit of an outlier thanks to his spread offense mobility that Burrow doesn’t have. The guy in that 2005 draft who did bring the heat – Aaron Rodgers – fell to the 24th overall pick, and the 49ers and Jim Harbaugh later replaced Smith with Colin Kaepernick, who fired a major league fastball.

That’s not to say Burrow can’t throw, but this is the No. 1 overall pick we’re talking about.

In the NFL, arm matters.

And then there’s this issue …

NEXT: NFL Draft History, Part 1

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