Joe Burrow was wrong.
The Bengals quarterback said he had to “play damn near perfect” for Cincinnati to beat Baltimore on Sunday.
Turns out, Burrow needed to be perfect. He needs to be perfect every game – and that’s impossible. Even in a game where Burrow threw a career-high five touchdowns, completed 77% of his passes and threw for nearly 400 yards, the Bengals lost 41-38 in overtime to the Ravens at Paycor Stadium.
Bengals front office to blame for lost season in Cincinnati
That’s how god-awful the Bengals’ defense is. It’s mostly why Cincinnati has lost four of its first five games.
This season is lost.
And you can blame it squarely on the front office.
“We’re not a championship-level team right,” said Burrow, who to be clear wasn’t blaming anyone in particular.
Preach it, Joe. So can the super fans and everyone in and around Paycor Stadium stop with how wonderful the Bengals are?
Bengals have failed at building NFL championship team
Fact is, the organization has done almost nothing to improve the defense since the Bengals lost the AFC Championship game in Kansas City in January 2023. Heck, the front office hasn’t done much of anything to improve since then other than pay Burrow a $275 million contract.
The Bengals, never on the cutting edge of change, are set in their ways with their philosophy: Joe, buddy, it’s on you and only you.
We’re seeing the fallout of an organization that has put all the weight of a franchise on its quarterback. This may come as a surprise to folks in Cincinnati: It takes more than a quarterback to win in the NFL. Even as good and special as Burrow is.
Trying to outscore teams every week isn’t a sustainable plan. And yet the Bengals have let star safety Jesse Bates walk away. They’ve let run-stuffing defensive tackle DJ Reader leave town. They’ve not drafted or signed anyone good enough to replace them.
Bengals defense is embarrassing
You must have at least a serviceable defensive line, one that can rush the quarterback and stop the run. The Bengals often leave you wondering if they even have a defensive line.
Case in point: Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson’s six-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely with 5:24 left in the fourth quarter. Jackson fumbled the shotgun snap. He still had plenty of time to pick up the ball, scramble to his right, knock down Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard with a stiff arm and throw the pass across his body as he was falling out of bounds. It was a huge momentum boost for the Ravens, who cut the deficit to 38-35.
That play should’ve been an embarrassment for anyone in the Bengals organization who has any responsibility for the defensive line.
Defensive line might be the position area where Cincinnati’s woefully understaffed player personnel and scouting department has consistently missed the most. The list of busts or underwhelming performers since the 2019 draft is as long as the beer line at a sold-out game: Renell Wren, Khalid Kareem, Joseph Ossai, Cam Sample, Tyler Shelvin, Wyatt Hubert and Zach Carter. Five of them are no longer on any NFL roster.
It’s not fair to judge 2024 second-rounder Kris Jenkins or third-rounder McKinnley Jackson just yet, both defensive tackles picked to help bolster the run defense. Defensive end Myles Murphy, Cincinnati’s first-round pick in 2023, made his season debut Sunday. He’s not been impressive so far in his short career, but still needs time to develop.
All this points to the Bengals getting comfortable after that two-year run to the Super Bowl and back to the AFC Championship game. As long as Burrow’s upright, the front office calculated, the Bengals have a shot. Burrow is pretty damn special, but he’s powerless to stop the run, rush the other team’s quarterback and tackle.
Two seasons in a row now the Bengals have stunk at stopping the run. It allows the opponent to control the clock and keep Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase off the field.
Want to know why the Kansas City Chiefs and Ravens keep winning? Because they address their problem areas by consistently drafting well and filling in the gaps with capable free-agent signings.
The Chiefs and Ravens don’t go cheap. They have robust player personnel staffs. For example, I counted 24 names on the Ravens’ player personnel department list. The Bengals have a half-dozen people working in their player personnel department.
Of course, this shouldn’t shock anyone. Those of us who view things objectively know the Chiefs and Ravens are committed to excellence. Those franchises have Lombardi trophies in their headquarters and know what it takes to win it all.
The Bengals, meanwhile, haven’t really changed for decades. They were so bad for so long that they got the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft. Everyone would’ve taken Burrow with that pick. He led the Bengals to their glory days.
It’s obvious those days are over now.
Contact columnist Jason Williams at jwilliams@enquirer.com
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Joe Burrow can’t do it all, Bengals season is lost | Williams
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