He wasn’t even the only quarterback who completed less than half of his passes.

Picture: Jonathan Bachman/Getty Imagesīurrow wasn’t the only passer throttled by an opposing defence. “We didn’t handle it today.”Ĭarl Granderson (#96) of the New Orleans Saints sacks Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill. “When it’s raining like that, it’s something you’ve got to handle,” said Burrow, who was also nursing a calf injury ahead of the season. By the end of the game, the inefficiency of one of the game’s best quarterbacks was staggering: He completed 14-of-31 passes for a paltry 82 yards. The quarterback, who just inked a deal that pays him $55 million annually, appeared to struggle in the conditions as several throws appeared to slip or wobble out of his hands. Passing touchdowns were down while sacks and fumbles were up, helping drive a start that lacked the widespread scoring explosions that have become so commonplace in recent years.īurrow’s troubles on a rainy day in Cleveland were the most stunning turn. Overall, teams averaged 20.6 points, far below last year’s mark of 21.9 a game. Through Sunday night’s games, quarterbacks averaged 6.3 yards per attempt, a sizeable dip from 7.0 last season.

It didn’t just look ugly - it’s backed up by data.

There was also a litany of special teams mistakes that made it seem like teams have an unusual amount of rust they still have to kick off. For quarterbacks, it was less enjoyable: many were shockingly inefficient and spent an usual amount of time getting dragged to the ground. It was a brutal start for offences across the league.įor fans who reminisce about the days when defences ruled the league, it was a banner start to the 2023 season. But it wasn’t an anomaly on the opening weekend. Then he took the field and had the worst game of his career.īurrow’s poor performance in Cincinnati’s 24-3 loss to the Cleveland Browns was out of character for him. Right before the first Sunday of the NFL season, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow signed a historic contract that made him the highest-paid player in the sport’s history.

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