Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow entered the 2022 NFL season as the face of the franchise after carrying the team to LVI, hoping to accomplish far more this year. While he has a long way to go before the Bengals are viewed as one of the best NFL teams right now, he certainly made his mark on Sunday.
Facing the Atlanta Falcons in Week 7, Burrow looked like an NFL MVP candidate right out of the gate. On the fourth play of the game, he connected with Tyler Boyd for a 60-yard touchdown strike to put Cincinnati up 7-0.
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On his next drive, Burrow completed 5-of-7 passes for 65 yards, with Joe Mixon punching it in from the 1-yard line for a two-score lead. After a Falcons’ three-and-out, the Bengals’ franchise quarterback connected on 5-of-5 attempts for 53 passing yards then delivered a perfect downfield strike to Ja’Marr Chase for a 32-yard touchdown.
- Joe Burrow stats (2022): 2,097 passing yards, 68.9% completion rate, 15-5 TD-INT, 102.7 QB rating, 7.8 yards per attempt, 130 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns
By halftime, Burrow racked up 345 passing yards, 13.8 yards per attempt with three touchdowns and a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
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It was a phenomenal performance by the 25-year-old quarterback. While Cincinnati eventually took its foot off the gas in a blowout victory over Atlanta, one of the best players in the NFL still managed to make NFL history in the process.
According to Greg Harvey of Sports Reference, Burrow became the first quarterback in NFL history with 450-plus passing yards, three-plus rushing touchdowns, a completion rate of 80% or better and a rushing touchdown in a single game. Incredibly, it’s not the only record Burrow broke on Sunday.
Burrow is the only player in NFL history with two regular-season games of at least 500 total yards and four total touchdowns. Furthermore, he is the first quarterback with five 400-yard performances in their first three NFL seasons.
Joe Burrow enters MVP race with last two performances
In the season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Burrow nearly overcame five turnovers to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. He also struggled in Week 2, finishing with just 199 passing yards, six sacks and an 89.9 quarterback rating in a defeat against the Dallas Cowboys.
Ever since that 0-2 start, we’re beginning to see the quarterback who took the Bengals on an improbable run through the NFL playoffs last season. In his last five games, during which the Bengals are 4-1, Burrow is playing at an elite level at home and on the road.
- Joe Burrow stats (Week 3-7): 1,560 passing yards, 71.3% completion rate 12-1 TD-INT, 117.2 QB rating, 8.6 yards per attempt, three rushing touchdowns
The last two games have been some of the best football, including his Heisman Trophy season with the LSU Tigers. During this two-week run, Burrow completed 78.5% of his passes with 781 passing yards, a 133.2 passer rating and eight total touchdowns.
There’s a reason the Bengals refused to even entertain trade inquiries from other teams leading up to the 2020 NFL Draft. Cincinnati believed Burrow could fix the entire franchise, establishing a winning culture and making everyone around him better. Incredibly, he has surpassed all expectations and there’s no reason to think he’ll slow down anytime soon.
