For Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, there won’t be much left to do, should he win on Super Sunday. It sounds crazy to say, about a 25-year-old, but look at all the Ames, Iowa native has accomplished already.
He led LSU to a national title in college, won the Heisman Trophy in 2019, and became the #1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Given the Bengals’ very lackluster franchise history, he’s already up there with Boomer Esiason and Ken Anderson as the franchise’s Mt. Rushmore of QBs.
He might just be a smart bet to pull off the upset in Super Bowl 56 too.ย The Bengals are +4.5, which is an interesting proposition, when you consider that this is a de facto road game for them.
After 54 Super Bowls, no team ever played in their home stadium for it, and now we’ve had that happen in back to back years. Don’t count Joe Burrow and Cincinnati out, as their overall postseason has been about nothing but defying the odds.
They entered the NFL’s version of the big dance as a low seed, with a 10-7 record.
โThey were a team that felt tested,” said NFL legend and CBS/Showtime NFL pundit Michael Irvin.
“Each one of those games in each round โ they were one-possession wins. So, this team got tested for the future, not just for the Super Bowl.โ ย
In just his second season, Joe Burrow led the Bengals to their first playoff win since 1990, ending the longest active drought in the four major North American sports.ย
And he did it with the help of all-world wide receiver JaโMarr Chase, who combined with him to form what was arguably the best pitch and catch combo in the AFC this past season.ย ย
โTheyโre walking into this franchise, and theyโre not thinking about the last 30 or 40 years of history,” said former NFL receiver and Paramount Plus pundit Brandon Marshall.ย
“Theyโre coming and saying, โWe just won a national championship.โ So first, it starts there with Joe Burrow. Youโve got JaโMarr Chase.ย
Those young guys are coming in with energy saying, โI donโt care about that.โโ ย
After just one full season, and another injury shortened rookie season, Burrow already holds the Bengals franchise records for passer rating, completion percentage, and single-game passing yards. He’s also tied with Boomer Esiason for the most playoff wins.
Bengals fans love to rock out to Guns n Roses’ iconic 1987 hard rock anthem “Welcome to the Jungle.”
Win or lose in Super Bowl 56 on Sunday, Joe Burrow is unquestionably the King of the Cincy Jungle.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net)ย andย author of โTransatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,โ as well asย โNo, I Canโt Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.โ
He has regularly appeared inย WGN,ย Sports Illustratedย and theย Chicago Tribune,ย andย co-hosts theย After Extra Time podcast.ย Follow himย onย Twitterย andย Instagram.ย
