The Cincinnati Bengals lost an absolute heartbreaker to their arch-nemesis the Pittsburgh Steelers to open the 2022 NFL season. Bengals quarterback, Joe Burrow had the worst performance of his career and Cincinnati looked like it was sleepwalking through the first two quarters. Burrow was pressured the entire game relentlessly. He was also sacked seven times to go with four interceptions and a lost fumble. Burrow did come alive in the second half and almost led the Bengals to victory twice with the potential game-winning drive to end regulation and a stellar drive in overtime. The unsteady performance may be attributed to missing time from the ruptured appendix or possibly from not taking a snap in the preseason. Whatever the reason was, Burrow still ultimately gave the Bengals opportunities to win the game. Cincinnati’s signal caller will look to rebound quickly this week against a tough Dallas Cowboys team.
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Joe Burrow Looks to Rebound After Unsteady Week 1 Performance
Shaking off the Rust
NFL quarterbacks are creatures of habit and crave the repetitions that come in OTA’s and training camp. Burrow missed significant time due to an emergency appendectomy in late July. This essentially put him behind a month of getting in football shape, adding body weight, and throwing passes to skill position players. Another significant factor in the Bengals loss was the offensive line woes that reared their ugly head once again. This plagued this team badly in 2021 and Cincinnati spent big in free agency signing La’el Collins, Alex Cappa, and Ted Karras. This group also didn’t play at all together in the preseason. There did seem to be continuity and communication issues that affected playcalling early on against the Steelers. The rebuilt line will need to play more unified, while also limiting the hits and sacks Burrow is taking if this team is to be successful long-term.
Best Friends
Not all was doom and gloom in the Week 1 loss for the Bengals. The Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase connection looks as strong as ever. Even though Chase didn’t have any deep catches, he torched the Steelers defense on crossing routes and in the red zone. Chase finished his day with 10 receptions for 129 yards with a touchdown and had some incredible catches that almost willed the Bengals to victory.
There's that duo! #PITvsCIN | 📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/inJnxQcOhC
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) September 11, 2022
Burrow trusts Chase implicitly in crunch time with the game on the line. This duo won’t back down from a challenge and their chemistry can carry a team when the unit as a whole is playing poorly.
A Beautiful Mind
What truly sets the great quarterbacks apart is their ability to retain information, while also having a short memory when things don’t go to plan. This is the hallmark of what makes Burrow so special. He can quickly process what he sees defensively and seemingly performs better as the game goes on irrespective of his mistakes. Burrow took this loss very hard even though it’s a game they could’ve just as easily won.
Update: it’s been 45 minutes since the game ended. Media leaving locker room. He’s still sitting there.
His only brief break was a quick press conference.
— Jeremy Rauch (@FOX19Jeremy) September 11, 2022
Look for this game to fuel Burrow for the remainder of the season. He won’t let one poor performance keep him from being the gunslinger the Bengals desperately need him to be.
