9-8 Is Not A Disappointment, It’s A Sign Of Optimism
Syndication: The Enquirer
There is no denying that the 2023 season for the Cincinnati Bengals was a disappointment. Joe Burrow was only fully healthy for five games this year, and at the time of his season ending injury against Baltimore, the Bengals had an even .500 record. It was his first season ending injury since 2020, when the Bengals were well out of the playoff race.
This time around, the Bengals had found themselves right back in the thick of the playoff race right after Burrow had fully recovered from his calf injury. When he went down and Browning took over as the starter, it felt like Cincinnati had no hope left.
Much to everyone’s surprise, Browning went on a Linsanity-type run that gave Cincinnati hope in a year where they thought all hope was completely lost. In a year where the Bengals underachieved, Jake Browning, who Bengals fans had very little hope in, overachieved in his tenure.
While it’s difficult to call a year in which the Bengals aren’t in the playoffs an overachievement, the Jake Browning-led certainly overachieved in terms of performance and record.
Joe Burrow hopes to ready to start throwing by OTAs. Also very happy for Jake Browning that he’s “made a career” for himself pic.twitter.com/GwfaAUMzRs
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) January 8, 2024
Despite the injuries to players like Joe Burrow, DJ Reader, Tee Higgins, and Cam Taylor-Britt (among others), they only had one fewer regular season win than the team that reached the Super Bowl just two seasons ago.
The defining victory of Jake Browning’s starting tenure was his first career win against the Jaguars. After putting up a dud in his first career start, nobody expected the Bengals, who were coming off of their third straight loss, to even have a chance. Browning came in, threw for 354 yards (the highest total of any Bengals QB in 2023), and gave the Bengals a much needed boost heading into the rest of the season.
Browning followed up the Bengals’ 34 point effort in Jacksonville with another 34 point effort against Indianapolis. The week after, Cincinnati defeated their second straight “apolis” as they notched a comeback victory against the Vikings. After those three straight victories, Browning came back down to earth with losses to the Steelers and Chiefs, which eliminated the Bengals from the postseason.
Browning’s 4-3 record as a starter is quite the achievement, considering he was a practice squad mainstay ever since he entered the league in 2019 with the Vikings. After being fairly unknown to NFL fans prior to this season, he ended the 2023 season as a league leader in a very critical category.
For everyone who was worried about Jordan Love's completion percentage earlier in the season:
The NFL leader in completion percentage this year was Jake Browning.
Don't worry about stats – watch the guy play.
— Bruce Irons (@BruceIronsNFL) January 8, 2024
In all fairness, 2023 was an unprecedented year for the backup quarterback. In Jake Browning’s tenure as a QB, only two QBs he faced (Trevor Lawrence and Patrick Mahomes) played all of their team’s games ahead of each of their matchups against the Bengals.
9-8 should not be looked at as a disappointing season; rather, it should be looked at as a sign for optimism. They overcame, among other things: a talented secondary that was marred by inexperience, significant injuries to several of their best playmakers, the NFL’s toughest schedule (their opponents had a combined .571 winning percentage), and a defense that allowed the second most yards in the entire NFL. The fact that the Bengals achieved a winning record while facing all those obstacles is no small feat.
Not only is a winning record in 2023 a sign for optimism, but it should be heavily looked at as a building block for 2024. While we here at the Noise are fully aware of the dread that comes with the age old adage “There’s always next year”, it actually rings true for Cincinnati. The Bengals have been Super Bowl contenders for the last few seasons, and last time we checked, Joe Burrow is still the franchise QB.
When Joe Burrow was fully healthy, the Bengals looked like the elite team we all have come to know since he was drafted. Among the massive games they won on Joe Burrow’s hot streak were a Sunday night win against Buffalo, a road win in Arizona where Ja’Marr Chase had more receiving yards than the entire Cardinals’ receiving corps, and a victory in San Francisco where Cincinnati took advantage of the absences of Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel.
With a fully healthy roster and new pieces added, there is no reason to believe Cincinnati won’t return to that elite form. That said, Joe Burrow, who is always looking to improve his game in addition to everyone around him, knows there is work to be done to get ready for the 2024 season.
Joe Burrow says there was a lot more than just injuries that Bengals have to fix to get back “up to our standards” in 2024 pic.twitter.com/0K1IgBS8M4
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) January 8, 2024
Despite the pleasant surprise that was their winning record in 2023 given the circumstances, the Bengals will face a lot of uncertainty in 2024 that will need to be addressed. How will the Bengals address departed roster pieces? What pieces will the Bengals add? Perhaps most uncertain – will any Bengals coaches depart for a head coaching gig? According to a recent Tom Pelissero update, it’s entirely possible.
The #Chargers requested an interview with #Bengals OC Brian Callahan for their head coaching job, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 10, 2024
While missing the playoffs will sting until training camp rolls around, the Bengals have nowhere to go but up after the tough but promising year that was 2023.
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