Joe Burrow being limited and then ultimately being injured behind this offensive line because he has to do everything for this team?
We saw this coming miles away.
This is why, unfortunately, we faded the Bengals in the futures market this offseason.
It was unlikely Burrow could survive this season doing everything on every snap.
So far this year, Burrow has been pressured on 42% of dropbacks (#30).
He was hit on 27% of his dropbacks (#32).
And this is nothing new.
The Bengals' offensive line ranks in pass block win rate over the last five years:
2025: #28
2024: #32
2023: #27
2022: #30
2021: #30
It’s been the worst OL in the NFL.
The entire organization, starting at the top, has been playing with fire for years.
Let’s talk about some of the phases of the game that Burrow was trying to overcome, other than his own offensive line.
His run game?
Through two weeks this season, the Bengals' run game ranks:
#31 in yards per carry at 3.1
#30 in explosive run rate at 0%
#31 in rate of runs for 1 yard or fewer (43%)
#31 in yards before contact at -0.17
His defense?
Through two weeks this season, they rank dead last in yards to go for opponents on third down and, as a result, rank #29 in third down conversion rate allowed (52%).
They force punts on just 18% of drives (#31) and allow 41% of opponent drives to reach the red zone (#30).
Bad defense.
Bad run game.
Bad offensive line.
Yes, they added Dalton Risner via free agency before the season, but he received a 44 grade in Week 1 and a 48 grade in Week 2.
He currently ranks 63 out of 67 qualifying guards in overall grade at Pro Football Focus.
Burrow was always going to have to drag this team forward, and it was always going to be extraordinarily difficult for him to do that while staying healthy for a full 17 games.
Unfortunately, he barely made it through one game before the wheels came off.
And if you can’t see the organizational failure in this injury, I don’t know what to tell you but to look closer at the data.
