The Bengals have been preparing for this for months – and here is what they face: drafting the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck and not ruining his career. Joe Burrow is elite. Guys like him just do not come around often and for a franchise like Cincinnati that has historically had trouble closing the deal when it matters most, the responsibility of selecting a can’t miss guy can seem daunting. You must get this right, or, well, no elite quarterback prospect will ever want to come to Cincinnati again.
But Burrow is just so much better than a typical quarterback prospect. To the point that if anyone can overcome a bad franchise or force them from bad to good enough to win, it is him. He is coming from a pro-style offense in college, he has every tool imaginable and is ready to come help a team win – like, right now. The spread scheme at LSU — where Joe Brady, now the Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator and a budding starting in football — was a perfect fit for Burrow. Brady regularly put him in a position to showcase his talent and with so many great weapons around, college defenses suffered every week even trying to slow the offense down.
But, while Burrow excelled in the scheme, he has the ability to play in any style of NFL offense and be one of the better quarterbacks in the league. He will now be asked to run Bengals head coach Zac Taylor’s west coast offense. Here are things I like and don’t like about the situation.
Let’s take a look:
- Like: Cincinnati can immediately surround Burrow with one of the better wide receivers in the NFL in A.J. Green and great complimentary pieces in Tyler Boyd and Auden Tate.
We do not know what Green will look like coming off a wasted season because of an ankle injury, but, since 2012, he has been in elite territory for wide receivers when he is on the field. Green’s absence gave Tyler Boyd the opportunity to prove himself as a reliable option for an entire season and he delivered. Boyd received a little more than 25% of the targets (148 of 589) in the passing game in 2019 and reached the 1,000-yard receiving mark. He emerged as one of the better slot receivers in the NFL, routinely beating nickel corners with a combination of crisp route running, speed, and quickness. Boyd does a great job of finding separation towards the end of plays and giving the quarterback a target when things seem to break down. Placing him in the slot gives him an immediate advantage, especially when he can use his quickness against linebackers.
With Boyd in the slot, opposite Green on the outside in 11-personnel sets will likely be Auden Tate. While staying healthy has been an issue for him, Tate is a great compliment to Green and Boyd. He has an uncanny ability to separate from defenders when the ball is in the air and could ultimately emerge as a red-zone target with his size. Even with playing only 12 of 16 games, Tate finished second on the team in targets, which shows what the team’s offensive coaches think about his talent and ability. Tate has great hands that he’s able to show off when tough catches need to be made. His 6’5, almost 230-pound frame makes him a nightmarish guard for smaller corners and with the 6-foot-4 Green on the opposite side, Burrow will have likely the two tallest outside receivers in the NFL.
- Don’t like: The offensive line, specifically the interior, has hampered this offense completely
Zac Taylor is a young play caller. That is a detriment usually, as seasoned play callers have more success in the NFL. But because the offensive line has been so porous, there has not been much room to see how good his offense can be. The team is constantly playing behind the sticks because whoever is under center is facing pressure almost immediately. And mostly interior pressure, which forces the quarterback off his square and disrupts the timing of the offense. There is also trouble running the football, even with such a dynamic player like Joe Mixon as the lead back. When the offensive line does hold up, there are positives: perfectly timed calls, creative runs and a mix of different concepts that keeps the defense off guard. For Burrow to reach his potential, the Bengals must avoid an Andrew Luck-type situation where the beating he took in the beginning of his career contributed to an early retirement.
- Like: Spread concepts are found throughout the offense
From Taylor’s time in the Miami Dolphins organization (2012-16) as a quarterback coach and offensive coordinator, the team operated in a spread offense. While most of the scheme this past season in Cincinnati mirrored Sean McVay’s system in Los Angeles, there were spread concepts throughout that allowed the team to take deep shots to keep opposing defenses off balanced. This is great news for Burrow, who will likely get the best of both worlds. He’ll be comfortable with the 5-and-7-step drops with deep shots in the spread offense, but the quick throws of a predominately west coast system will allow him to keep the chains moving and get the ball out behind a questionable offensive line.
- Don’t like: Tight end position has question marks
At LSU, Burrow had a full compliment of weapons to work with. There will likely be multiple first-round prospects selected from the offense, but he seemed to have a special connection with his tight end, Thaddeus Moss. While his stats were much lower than the other receivers in the offense, when Burrow needed to complete a big throw, he often looked for the big body of Moss to move the sticks. With Tyler Eifert moving on from Cincinnati and last year’s second round pick, Drew Sample, unproven and mostly operating as a third string tight end last year, there is a huge void there. So basically, after drafting Burrow, Cincinnati needs to completely focus on the six guys who put their hands in the ground in 11 personnel, whether that is through the draft, free agency, or trade.
The privilege of selecting Burrow immediately puts Cincinnati in a great position going forward. Having the most important position in sports taken care of for hopefully a decade-plus with this type of player immediately put you in the top-half of the NFL when it comes to competing for a Super Bowl. The issues are the lack of suitable ancillary pieces throughout the roster and a young play caller and head coach. We will see if those two things are addressed.