The Cincinnati Bengals find themselves in an uncomfortable yet familiar position again. With star quarterback Joe Burrow out for at least three months, they will have to contend for a playoff spot without arguably their best player. In his stead, Jake Browning will once again be under center for the Bengals.
How much belief do the Bengals' higher-ups have in Browning? It seems like his past experience with the team has boosted his stock amongst the Cincinnati coaching staff, per Dan Graziano's report.
“The Bengals believe in Jake Browning's ability to operate their offense and win games,” Graziano writes in his ESPN report. “They cite the work he did over the second half of the 2023 season when Burrow went down because of a wrist injury. They went 4-3 in games Browning started, and he's now in his fifth season in their system, knows the offense well and has more experience than he had then.”
The Bengals believe that they have the best backup quarterback in the league in Jake Browning. That's not necessarily a horrible take: he had a whopping 70.4% completion rate in seven games in 2023. That being said, Browning has clear deficiencies in his game. The Bengals were able to hide these flaws well, but they still popped up often enough in 2023 to cost them a few games.
Browning also has a tougher task ahead than he did in his last go-around. For one, he'll be tasked to man the Bengals offense for at least three months: he only started in seven games in 2023. Cincinnati also has a brutal schedule up against: they face the Vikings, Broncos, Lions, and Packers in the next four weeks, and they have a few AFC North bouts up ahead after that.
Perhaps Browning's worst enemy, though, is also his greatest asset, according to the Bengals. Cincinnati cites Browning's experience in 2023 as a big reason for their faith in the QB. What that also means, though, is that other teams have tape on the backup QB to look at. Teams will be much more prepared to face Browning's Bengals than last year.
Ultimately, it's up to Browning and the Bengals to prove their claim that Browning is the best backup in the league. First up on their docket is a date against the Vikings. Browning had a memorable game against the Vikings, throwing a miraculous game-winner to Tee Higgins in 2023.
