Joe Burrow's Performance and Leadership is Key to Possible Cincinnati Bengals Turnaround

The Bengals are 0-3 for the first time in the Joe Burrow era.

Elise Jesse | 3 Hours Ago

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) stands by between plays in the second quarter of the NFL Week 3 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Washington Commanders at Paycor Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024. The Commanders led 21-13 at halftime. / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Cincinnati Bengals

If a team scores 30 or more points in an NFL game, it usually means that team will win, especially if they don't turn the ball over. Joe Burrow’s record when the Bengals score 30 or more points got worse (7-4) after a Monday night's 38-33 loss to the Commanders.

“We had our opportunities and didn’t cash in on them and that’s been the common denominator in the first three weeks,” Joe Burrow said after the loss.

He lived up to his paycheck in Week 3 , completing passes to seven of his teammates. Burrow goes into Week 4 ranked 8th in the NFL passing yards and fifth in the league with five passing touchdowns.

Despite the stellar numbers, Burrow shares blame in the loss.

Yes, the defensive side of the ball was full of issues on Monday night. Cincinnati’s defense looked like it was trying to climb Mount Everest while wearing ice skates. The visual you’re getting doesn’t even do justice to the ugliness of Cincinnati’s defensive display against the Commanders.

After the game, Burrow hinted at the need to reevaluate his approach in leadership. Nothing truer can be said. In winless times the team will lean heavily on Burrow above anyone else, which includes the players on the defensive side of the ball.

His ability to lead this team out of a shipwreck will require much more than showing up to work early or practicing well. There’s an interpersonal skill set that Burrow must bring to the table along with the ability to inspire the guys around him to want to execute well not just for their own success but for his. He’s got to be able to connect with all of the guys in the locker room in a more effective way and he knows it.

Is an 0-3 start awful? Yes.

Is there any good to take away from a winless team going to Carolina to face its former quarterback on a short week? The positives are hard to find, but BengalsTalk.com loves a challenge.

The Bengals still have a 36.4% chance to make the playoffs according to ESPN Stats & Info. They have the fourth easiest schedule for the final 14 games of the season.

Since 1990, 162 teams have started 0-3 and we’ve only seen four of those teams make the playoffs. Could Cincinnati be the fifth team in history to pull off an unbelievable feat like that? They’ve got the talent and the right schedule to do so, but do they have the right mentality?

Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase have never been 0-3 in their professional careers. Chase is usually pretty terse with one-word answers following a loss, but when asked how he plans to respond he gave this answer to BengalsTalk.com.

“Come in and be myself every day," Chase said. "Be a leader, give team effort and hopefully my guys do the same to me.”

As human beings we are hardwired to hope. We naturally gravitate towards optimism. While there isn’t a large list of good things that came from week three, Chase indicated that he has hope for the next 14 games.

Pessimism is a learned behavior. Have you ever noticed how optimistic the players seem to be even after multiple losses? The guys who have been here for multiple years haven’t been made in the shade. They haven’t been given much in the NFL, they’ve had to fight to take what they want each and every week.

The 0-2 starts can be examined to gauge how the team managed to find success in 2022 and what exactly sent them home early in 2023 and compare that to the 2024 season.

As it currently stands, Cincinnati’s defense is 26th in stopping the run allowing 142 yards per game. While the team was without two starting defensive lineman in BJ Hill and Sheldon Rankins, linebacker Germaine Pratt leaned into personal accountability instead of using injuries as an excuse.

“We have to play sound football, you know?” Pratt told BengalsTalk.com. “We’ve got to make plays in critical situations. I didn’t make the play in a critical situation, you go back to the fourth down (play), I didn’t contain him. It made him be mobile, get out of the pocket and give us straight to get a first down so I blame me. I don’t think it’s on the d-line. It’s on me.”

Personal and peer accountability paired with Burrow's ability to lead this team will be the driving force of hope for this team to right the ship and go on a meaningful win streak.

During the 2022 season Cincinnati started 0-2, but managed to win a few games beating Carolina in Week 9 to improve to 5-4 going into the bye.

The 42-21 win against the Panthers that year started a true momentum shift for the Bengals as they went on to win their final eight regular season games. The team would go on to win two more playoff games before eventually falling to Kansas City 23-20 in the AFC Conference game.

During that roller coaster of a start, the players stated that they were fine with being doubted, in their minds it only added fuel to their fire and brought them closer together.

They had an “us against the world” mentality. There was one common goal which kept players on one another. Slacking, taking plays off, misunderstanding plays was acceptable. That standard came from the locker room’s biggest leader.

The championship mindset starts with Burrow.

While the margin for error is razor thin, the Bengals could pull off the unthinkable. During the times when Bengals fans have seen Burrow’s team at it’s best is when they’ve been backed into a corner, forced to look themselves in the mirror, and fix the mistakes that have put them behind in the first place.

The Bengals could go 2-1 over the next three games, with the Panthers, Ravens and Giants. Winning two or even all three of these games will require a much higher level of play—especially on defense.

Two of the next three quarterbacks Cincinnati’s defense will face rank in the top 10 in QBR going into Week 4. Andy Dalton ranks second with an 86.4 quarterback rating and Lamar Jackson ranks eighth in the league with a 68.3 rating. Daniel Jones sits just inside the top 20 at 52.3.

The Bengals must start playing complimentary football in all three phases of the game. The lack of execution in one area can subsequently change the game’s flow as we’ve seen in the first three games of the season.

Cincinnati’s defense cannot allow a 2nd-and-20 to turn into a 27-yard touchdown pass a few plays later with the game on the line.

When the Bengals allow 20 or more points their record is 16-28-1 since 2020. Their record drops to 6-16 when they allow 25+ points to the opposition. If this team can begin to trust each other, execute their assignments, and keep the next 14 quarterbacks from getting comfortable, they’ll be able to achieve the first goal that was originally on the list in July: win the AFC North.

The sky is not falling yet. There is hope and optimism even with a winless record, but they need to start winning games starting with Sunday's matchup against the Panthers.

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