Sep 13, 2020; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) runs drills during warmups before the first quarter of the NFL Week 1 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Chargers at Paul Brown Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020. Mandatory Credit: Sam Greene/Cincinnati Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK
The news on Friday that Joe Burrow will miss the entire season due to a torn ligament has put the Cincinnati Bengals in a terrible situation. As they witnessed during the second half of their lopsided loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night, Burrow’s replacement, backup quarterback Jake Browning, has a significant drop off.
The Bengals, who need to be playing much better when Burrow was in the lineup, will need to pull together as a team to salvage their season and make it to the postseason with Burrow out of the lineup.
The Bengals’ issue is that they might not be good enough to accomplish their objectives this season. It’s one thing that the offense is sidelined, but the defense is terrible right now.
The previous two Bengals teams have had similarly bad starts to their seasons. Cincinnati began 2022 with a 0-2 record and battled its way to the AFC title game, where it was defeated by the Kansas City Chiefs, the eventual Super Bowl champions. Considering the extremely narrow margin for error following defeat in the season’s opening two games, it was an incredible accomplishment.
For the Bengals of 2023, whose defense has collapsed, that doesn’t seem feasible. The Bengals of 2022 were seventh in terms of success rate (42.2%) and eighth in terms of expected points allowed per play (minus-0.045), according to RBSDM.com. When combined with a top-five offense, that team possessed the necessary tools to emerge from a hole and go on a tear. The Bengals defense this season is ranked 30th in terms of success rate (46.4%) and 22nd in terms of expected points allowed per play (minus-0.001).
