Joe Burrow came into the NFL after winning the College Football Championship the same year, establishing himself as a superstar in the making. In five seasons, he has led his Cincinnati Bengals to one Super Bowl which added to that notion. However, this season could be the third time out of those five seasons, he does not make it to the playoffs.
The Cincinnati Bengals were hampered by two stretches of games. The first which opened their season saw them lose three straight games. Then another three game losing streak provoked several questions. One question many asked is if the front office did enough to field a solid defense.
But another question that should have been asked was if Joe Burrow had done enough. Some felt he had, whereas others felt, had he done what he was billed to be, his team would have been in the playoffs. In light of those narratives, suddenly the quarterback’s legacy is on the line if his team misses the playoffs.
Errors in close games
At the start of this season, Joe Burrow did not look 100% as his team lost three straight games. Constantly flexing his wrist suggested he was still in some pain when throwing the football. But after those three losses came a win over the struggling Carolina Panthers.
However, it was the game after that, that started to point the narratives towards Burrow. They lost to the Baltimore Ravens in overtime by three points at home. In that loss, with a little more than three minutes to go, the QB’s interception while in the lead allowed the Ravens to come back and score to tie.
That interception was what enraged the likes of Shannon Sharpe, who felt the QB was not getting criticized enough for his mistakes. Sharpe felt that Burrow’s touchdowns and yards were glossing over those errors, and that one cannot keep blaming their defense.
Sharpe’s point showed up again in their close loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Two costly strip sacks gave the Steelers chances to extend their lead. One could blame the struggling offensive line, but another logic that goes with elite QB’s is that are aware of incoming sacks and try to avoid them.
Burrow seemed completely unaware of the pass rushers bending around his linemen. This along with interceptions against the Eagles, another close game at the time, led to losses that could have been wins. All those losses have played a role in possibly ending their season early.
The Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins effect
When throwing the 4641 yards and 42 touchdowns he has racked up, it is not as if the Iowa native did it on his own. He had arguably the best receiving tandem in the league in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Any team would love to have such a tandem at their disposal.
But the Cincinnati Bengals did one better. In the offseason, they acquired free agent tight end Mike Gesicki who is a solid receiving tight end. Add second year player Andrei Iosivas and the Bengals had an elite receiving core.
Then add in the coaching staff’s wizardry while calling plays and the Bengals had an offense that would give even the top defenses a scare. If a quarterback has such talent at his disposal and did not rack up those numbers, it would be inexplicable.
Therefore, those numbers are not just of Joe Burrow’s doing. He had an elite set of players who helped him get there. On the other hand, those interceptions, fumbles, and strip sacks had nothing to do with them. Which brings the question back on to the superstar QB’s ability to close out games.
Joe Burrow getting a pass for going to championship games
Another criticism Shannon Sharpe has had on Joe Burrow was that the QB was getting too much of a pass just because he once went to the Super Bowl along with his College Football Championship. He felt that those two trips to championship games have given the narrative that Burrow is elite.
The quarterback is a cut above many and is well worth his salary. However, the pass angle does hold some water. The Bengals defense has been admittedly bad this season and other mistakes have been highlighted as the reason for the Bengals bad run.
In addition to that, just because he went to Championship games, there is a tendency to think that the former LSU star is great. In fact, another player who won a College Football Championship and was blazing hot in the first few years of his career was Deshaun Watson.
But now, the former Clemson star is a turnover machine and if not for his contract, would likely be out of the league. It is not to say that Joe Burrow will follow in his footsteps. But to suggest that a player is great due to his past accomplishments is not a logic the results-based business that is sports runs by.
Had Joe Burrow been elite, he could have avoided those turnovers and led his team to wins. Elite quarterbacks have done that in their careers. Therefore, if the Cincinnati Bengals were to end their season on Sunday, the QB’s legacy is going to take a hit.
