Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow showed why he was the No. 1 overall pick with the performance he put on during the 2021 season. Which teams can he torch during the 2022 season?
After a promising rookie season that was cut short by an injury, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow went right back to being a championship-caliber quarterback and he proved that by getting his Bengals to the Super Bowl. This was the first time the Bengals had been to the big game since the late 80s and Burrow helped make it happen.
With a dominant season under his belt and now knowing that the Bengals aren’t cursed and can win with Burrow at the helm, what three teams should the signal-caller be able to torch in year three?
All stats and rankings courtesy of Pro Football Reference
3. Atlanta Falcons
The AFC North and NFC South square off this year meaning that the Bengals and Falcons will be facing each other in the 2022 season. The stripes host the Falcons in Week 7 in what should be a game where Burrow can pad the stat sheet.
Atlanta’s secondary isn’t necessarily bad but there are a lot of question marks surrounding it. The good news is that the Falcons signed Casey Hayward away from the Raiders who is coming off a really good season in Las Vegas. The birds also have A.J. Terrell coming back, who is also coming off a solid year.
That’s where the good news ends for the Falcons secondary, though. The other three projected starters are Isaiah Oliver, Jaylinn Hawkins, and Erik Harris. If you’re asking “Who?”, you’re not alone.
Burrow should be able to obliterate the Falcons’ secondary in Week 7.
2. New England Patriots
It’s weird to see the Patriots on any kind of list where the defense is a weakness but here we are. New England isn’t the same threat it once was and they’ve proven that in the two years since Tom Brady left.
The defense might still be decent but the secondary in Foxboro is definitely the weakness on that side of the ball. They have good options at safety with Devin McCourty and Adrian Phillips but what hurts the Patriots the hardest is losing J.C. Jackson to the Chargers. Jackson had eight interceptions last year and nine in 2020. Losing a ball hawk like that is going to change the narrative for any secondary.
The other starting cornerbacks for the Pats are Malcolm Butler, Jalen Mills, and Kyle Dugger, so it’s not all bad but it’s hard to be intimidated by this group.
Then again, the Patriots always tend to play well on the defensive side of the ball, and with Bill Belichick as a head coach and defensive-minded guru, you can never count them out.
It does feel as though Burrow will be able to tear apart this secondary though.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
Oh how the mighty have fallen, am I right?
Don’t get me wrong — The Steelers still have a great defense but it starts and ends with their pass rush. The secondary is going to be the weak link on that side of the ball and that bodes well for Joey Franchise, who had no problem picking apart the Steelers defense in two games last year and likely won’t have a problem doing so again this year.
Minkah Fitzpatrick is a stud but aside from him, the rest of the Steelers secondary is a whole lot of “meh”. Cameron Sutton, Levi Wallace, Ahkello Witherspoon, and Terrell Edmunds make up the rest of the starting secondary in Pittsburgh, and again… whole lot of “meh” right there.
Burrow showed last year that he doesn’t care about the history between these two teams and how Pittsburgh has generally beaten up on the stripes. Nope, Burrow went out there and dominated and it won’t be shocking to see him do so again in 2022.
Expect big things from Joe Burrow when he goes up against these three defenses in 2022.