Joe Burrow is in the middle of an MVP-caliber season for the Bengals. However, this week’s matchup is arguably the most critical game of the season so far, as the Bengals welcome the Steelers to Paycor Stadium on Sunday Night Football. Cincinnati legend Cris Collinsworth is set to call the game nationally and recently shared his thoughts on Burrow’s elite performance this season so far.
Collinsworth acknowledged the effort Burrow has put into his performance and the weight he has placed on himself as the leader of the football team. He also acknowledged how the Bengals offense functioned during his time with the team in the 80’s.
“He works very hard at his craft, but he’s basically taken this entire team on his shoulders, and I think everybody down there would tell you that,” Collinsworth said. “From just analyzing football, it’s always been you got to have a little bit of everything, when Cincinnati’s been good in the past and my teams went on to the Super Bowl, it was Pete Johnson, Ickey Woods, James Brooks and we had that sort of balance.”
Collinsworth admitted after that both the Packers and Bengals have shifted that balance into the most drastic pass-heavy approach he has witnessed.
“We’re seeing two teams that are taking all of that and shifting that paradigm in a way that I’ve never seen,” Collinsworth said. “The Green Bay Packers being one, their offensive line can’t block anybody running the football, the Bengals are much better than that, but it’s like maybe they do just have to throw it, as you’re watching the Atlanta game and I was like ‘why would you not give it Joe Burrow and throw it every time?”
He later explained that Burrow separates himself from other elite quarterbacks in the league by throwing at the exact correct moment. Collinsworth then detailed that this facet of Burrow’s ability allows Zac Taylor to call deep passes more often. He also said that Burrow and Mike Gesicki work the middle of the field better than other combinations he watches.
“He seems to throw it every time it’s the absolutely correct thing to do, and so as a coach what that does for you is it allows you to call a lot of deep passes, he just doesn’t miss the opportunities,” Collinsworth said. “They also have this great combination with Gesicki being enough of a threat going down the middle of the field that they work the middle of the field better than a lot of the combinations that I see.”
Collinsworth will call Sunday Nights action alongside Mike Tirico when the Bengals take on the Steelers in a high-stakes AFC North matchup. Watch the full interview below:
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