Joe Burrow,career ended today in Bengals after being traded for roughly $98.6 million…..
On Thursday, Joe Burrow became the highest-paid player in NFL history. On Sunday, he looked like the exact opposite of a franchise quarterback.
Burrow and the Bengals struggled immensely in Week 1, dropping a 24-3 contest to the Browns. The offense failed to get into the end zone at all, as the Cleveland defense gave the Cincinnati fits all day en route to a crucial AFC North victory.
The game got so out of hand that Bengals head coach Zac Taylor pulled Burrow from the game with five minutes to go, replacing him with backup Jake Browning for the final two drives of the game.
“Nobody is panicking in here ,” Burrow said after the game. “Week 1 doesn’t define anyone’s season. Obviously, not very good. Anybody that watched saw that. We’ve been in this spot before and we’ve come back stronger and had great years, so that’s what we’re going to do.”
The loss also follows a similar trend for Cincinnati and Burrow to start off seasons. In the last four season openers, the Bengals are 1-3, with Burrow at the helm in all four of the games.
The disappointing performance out of Burrow comes three days after he signed a five-year, $275 million contract to stay in Cincinnati as the franchise QB. While the past has shown that Sunday’s poor showing was likely just a blip on the radar, it’s not the way the Bengals — or Burrow — anticipated his first start to go after receiving his big check.
Joe Burrow stats today
Burrow had one of the worst performances of his career to open the 2023 NFL season.
The Bengals QB completed just 14 of his 31 pass attempts for 82 yards and no touchdowns, finishing with a quarterback rating of 52.2. His passing yards and passer rating were both career-lows.
Burrow could not find a rhythm with his wide receiving core. Star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase brought in five of his nine targets, but only for 39 yards, and Burrow targeted Tee Higgins eight times, but the lanky wide receiver came up with no receptions.
The longest play through the air on the day was a 12-yard catch to Chase on Cincinnati’s opening drive.
