3 key observations of Joe Burrow from Week 5 vs. Packers

3. If you have Joe Burrow, you still have a chance to win most games.

The popular narrative in some “expert” circles is Joe Burrow isn’t the player he was even early last year, not to mention in 2019 at LSU, and may never be due to the knee injury. This flies directly in the face of everything I’ve seen through five games.

Through five weeks, the Bengals are 3-2 and arguably should’ve been even better. Some of this credit goes to a suddenly strong defense of course, but even with this defense, can you imagine this team at 3-2 with Brandon Allen or even Andy Dalton? That’s no knock on either player, rather a reflection on how this team has taken on the attitude of its leader, Joe Burrow.

Burrow’s confidence, leadership and attitude has taken hold of this sideline and team, and the performance reflects that. It could’ve been easy to imagine Joe Mixon sitting out with the foot injury much like last season, and by no means am I suggesting that Burrow inspired Mixon to suck it up and play through the pain Sunday, but would it be a shock if that factored in?

Confidence, good vibes and chemistry are contagious and it appears this team has all three. One would think it would make players want to step up and play. As the leader, No. 9 has brought a toughness, swagger, and confidence to the Bengals that makes one believe they can win, despite the opponent or the in-game circumstances.

There was much to unpack from Sundays loss, and much Coach Zac Taylor must address, but these were my three key observations on Joe Burrow from the Green Bay Packer game.