When the Bengals' franchise quarterback Joe Burrow missed the season with a wrist injury, it appeared to be over for Cincinnati: The Bengals were 5-5, and they were sure to fare worse the rest of the season with the little-known backup -Jake Browning as quarterback, right?
Incorrect. Browning has performed exceptionally well since taking over as the Bengals' starting quarterback, and they are now 8-6 and currently No. 6 in the AFC playoff rankings. Beat the Steelers today and the Bengals will be in a great position to be a wild card team in the AFC.
Amazingly, Browning's stats this season are even better than Burrow's:
Browning is averaging 8.7 yards per pass this season. Burrow averaged 6.3 yards per pass this year before his season-ending injury.
Browning has a 73.6 percent completion rate. Burrow had a 66.8 percent completion rate.
Browning has thrown touchdowns on 4.9 percent of his passes. Burrow threw touchdowns on 4.1 percent of his passes.
Browning has a passer rating of 107.1. Burrow had a passer rating of 91.0.
The Bengals are 3-1 and have scored 25.0 points per game in games started by Browning. The Bengals were 5-5 and scored 20.7 points per game in the games Burrow started.
There is no question that Burrow is the Bengals' starting quarterback in 2024. But Browning is keeping her 2023 season alive. And he argues that he should be a starting quarterback somewhere.