Joe Burrow, the quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, had surgery to repair a wrist injury, ending his fourth season in the NFL. That has numerous implications for Cincinnati. Their offense’s potential, as well as that of almost the entire team, has significantly decreased without Burrow.
Additionally, according to analyst Joe Goodberry, Burrow’s injury probably means that the Bengals won’t be winning the Super Bowl this year, giving him and Zac Taylor one more year to break the negative NFL trend for long-term QB-head coach combos.
“You have another year before things really heat up for those who want Zac Taylor fired. After five years together, a head coach and quarterback combination has NEVER won a Super Bowl. Joe Burrow and Zac Taylor will be together for five years in 2024.
The Baltimore Ravens’ QB-head coach tandem of John Harbaugh and Joe Flacco from the 2012 NFL season was the last to win the Super Bowl in their fifth year together. Brett Favre and Mike Holmgren did it in 1996, Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Noll in 1974, and Peyton Manning and Tony Dungee in 2006. That concludes the list. Only in those two instances has a quarterback-head coach combination gone on to win a Super Bowl with the same team in the fifth or later season.
That may not be the best situation for the Bengals, but if Burrow recovers fully, they should still have optimism about their chances. Burrow led Cincinnati to within one victory of winning the Super Bowl during the 2021 NFL season, not too long ago.
