Getty Images Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Joe Burrow notched his first win against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday and promptly invited members of the Dawg Pound to jump ship for the other Ohio team.
Burrow led the Bengals to a 23-10 win on Sunday, passing for 239 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the win without two of his top weapons in Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. It was the first win in five starts for Burrow, who was the No. 1 overall pick of Cincinnati in 2020.
“Well, we’re still 1-4 against them so we’ve still got some work to do, but today was a good start,” Burrow said.
The Bengals made a run to the Super Bowl last year and nearly won it. After a slow start to the season, they’re tied atop the AFC North with the Ravens, while the Browns sit at 5-8 and have a very slim chance of making the postseason. Knowing that, Burrow had a message for fans in Ohio who have traditionally sported Browns colors.
“It is what it is. If people want to root for them, it is what it is,” Burrow said. “We love our fans. If you want to come on over, you can hop on the bandwagon.”
Browns Remain Frustrated After Another Loss
It’s been a rough season for the Browns, albeit some of the hardship was expected considering Deshaun Watson’s 11-game suspension. However, the offense has been disappointing and conservative since Watson’s return to the lineup, causing some additional frustration amid the 5-8 campaign.
“Very disappointing obviously to go down there and not come away with a victory. You put a lot of effort into this thing,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said on Monday. “The guys played hard, but it just wasn’t good enough yesterday, and that is frustrating. We know this, we play Saturday in front of our crowd [against] a division opponent so that is really where our focus has to go. It really has to turn quickly so that is what we are doing.”
Watson showed some solid improvement in his second start, shaking off just a bit of the rust, passing for 276 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also used his legs to make plays but it ultimately wasn’t enough.
Browns Committed to Getting Watson Reps
Prior to his start against Houston, Watson had not played a meaningful football game in 700 days. With the playoffs looking extremely unlikely, the team’s focus going forward will be to get Watson in sync with Stefanski’s offense for next season.
“I thought he definitely made strides,” Stefanski said. “Being away and then having that first game and getting that one out of the way. Then the second one, I did think you saw some improvements in decisions and improvements in technique, footwork and all of those type of things. Just making sure that all of those game reps he keeps adding on to what he is doing.”
Stefanski has been having to face questions about Watson being the starter for the rest of the season, consistently responding with a clear “yes.”
He is our starting quarterback. I am encouraged with how he played yesterday. He is going to continue to get better, and I think we will continue to get better as an offense with him.”