When the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow won with his quick decision making.
His anticipation set up the touchdown throw to tight end C.J. Uzomah in the first quarter as well as all of his throws to wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase that he released while Chase still had his back turned.
The Bengals offense worked because of Burrow’s ability to read the field. Against the Tennessee Titans this week, Burrow has earned the opportunity to show those skills even more often.
"You want to be balanced, but Joe can win us games," Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said. "When we get a chance to do that, we’re going to probably let him do that. That’s how it works with great quarterbacks, and he’s one of those guys. We can get him an opportunity to win us a game."
This week, facing a Titans team that’s great against the run but below average in the secondary, Burrow will get another chance to be the best player on the field. And in this matchup, Burrow should get even more opportunities.
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When given the chance on early downs, Burrow is getting rid of the ball before the opposing pass rush has a chance to win. Against the Raiders, Burrow only had three passing attempts on early downs where he had a full drop back or tried to extend the play outside the pocket.
In the face of disguised coverages or different schemes, Burrow is often pointing to which player he expects to blitz before he snaps the ball. With that approach and Burrow's ability to get rid of the ball quickly, the Bengals have been able to keep the opposing team's best defensive players in check for most of the second half of the season.
Most NFL teams feel cautious about throwing the ball 45-or-so times per game because of the wear-and-tear it puts on the offensive line. The Bengals have a proven quick-game approach, and Burrow's timing mitigates that concern.
"The hot hand thing is for real," Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said. "You can neutralize some (pressure packages) with quick game and play action passes, screens and things like that. Not everything has to be a drop back when you’re throwing it."
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor’s favorite moment from Burrow in the win over the Raiders was a two-play sequence. On one play, the Raiders ran their typical Cover-3 defense and left Chase in one-on-one coverage on the sideline. Burrow threw the ball on a comeback route for Chase before Chase even turned to make the catch, and it resulted in a first down.
Later in the game, the Bengals ran the exact same route concept. But this time, the Raiders ran one of their secondary coverages. With two defenders clouding Chase’s side of the field, Uzomah had one-on-one coverage over the middle.
After taking a short drop back, Burrow quickly made the throw over the linebacker and hit Uzomah in stride for the first down. Instead of taking away an opportunity, the Raiders' disguised coverage opened up a door for Burrow. And Burrow noticed it immediately, getting rid of the ball in about two seconds.
On that play, Burrow created an opportunity without putting much stress on the Bengals offensive line.
Even though the quick game worked nearly perfectly against the Raiders, the Bengals still can use it more.
In that game, the Bengals called runs on 21 of their 47 first and second downs. Early down runs were the only group of plays that had net-negative efficiency for the Bengals last week, but Taylor called runs on key second downs in the red zone.
In those moments, the Bengals statistically decreased their chances to put more points on the board.
The Titans defense is the fourth-best in the NFL against the run, but the defense is 21st against the pass. On Saturday, the Bengals best path to a win would feature more throws on-time from Burrow.
The Titans are going to show Burrow more Cover-1 looks with just a single high safety and fewer clouded zones taking away deep shots down the field.
That means more open windows for Burrow.
"We won’t abandon the way our offense works to do that," Callahan said. "But with the way (Burrow) responds, he has won us games. It’s all part of how the game flows, but at the end of the day, we have all the confidence in Joe to get the ball out of his hands and win us a game.
Just like Bengals wins over the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens, this matchup against the Titans projects to be a game that the Bengals can win by unlocking Burrow’s greatest strengths. Burrow can get rid of the ball quickly while still making exceptional plays.
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Whenever Burrow has had that chance in the second half of the season, he has rewarded the coaching staff's decision making.
"Joe Burrow has gotten hot in these last few weeks," Bengals running back Joe Mixon said. "He's rolling right now, so we're rolling with that hot hand."
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