Joe Burrow has worst first half of his career in Week 1 vs. Browns

Update — The Bengals are trailing big late in the fourth quarter and the team has decided to bench Burrow for the remainder of the game. Jake Browning is in at QB. It’s an odd move in Week 1 after you just paid Burrow all the money. Ja’Marr Chase appeared to still be in the game after Burrow was benched as well. Burrow finishes the game 14/31 for 82 yards.

The Cincinnati Bengals are facing the Cleveland Browns in Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season. The main storyline for Cincinnati in the preseason was the knee injury to quarterback Joe Burrow that caused him to miss the entire preseason. He is active for this game and was reportedly healthy, but he hasn’t looked like himself in the first half.

Burrow heads into halftime 6-of-14 passing for only 36 yards. That’s the lowest first half passing total of his career. Some credit likely deserves to be given to the Cleveland defensive front, but it still feels uncharacteristic for Burrow. It is worth noting that the weather hasn’t been great with cloud cover and consistent rain, but still, he hasn’t been good.

With Burrow struggling, the Bengals as a whole are falling behind. They are down 10-0, but nobody has even a good individual performance. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is a top wide receiver in the league and has been held to two receptions for 19 yards on just three targets. Tee Higgins hasn’t come down with any of his three targets. Running back Joe Mixon has seven carries for 45 yards and has been the best player through one half of action.