sports
Bengals rout Falcons 34-17 as Burrow throws three TDs
Joe Burrow completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards and three scores while Ja'Marr Chase caught 10 passes for 155 yards in the NFL Madrid Game.
Joe Burrow completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns and the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-17 on Sunday, ESPN reported.
Ja’Marr Chase caught 10 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown for the Bengals, who improved to 5-2. Bijan Robinson rushed 19 times for 100 yards and a score for the Falcons, who fell to 3-5.
The game was designated the NFL Madrid Game, part of the league’s international series. It was played in Atlanta.
What the coverage missed
Burrow’s 24-of-29 is the number. That is an 83% completion rate with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He is playing the best football of his career, and he is doing it behind a line that was supposed to be the team’s weakness. The Bengals are 5-2 and nobody is surprised.
Chase is on pace for 1,800 receiving yards. That would break Calvin Johnson’s single-season record. He has been unguardable since Week 3, and the Falcons had no answer for him. Ten catches on what looked like 12 targets. He ran every route in the book and got open on all of them.
The Falcons are 3-5 and going nowhere. Robinson is a good player on a bad team. He rushed for 100 yards and the Falcons still lost by 17. Kirk Cousins is not giving them enough at quarterback, and the defense cannot stop anyone. Atlanta has a bye next week, and the coaching staff will spend it deciding whether to keep starting Cousins or turn to the backup.
What I think
The Bengals are the best team in the AFC. I know the Chiefs are 5-2 and the Bills are 6-1, but Burrow is playing a different sport right now. When he is healthy and Chase is on the field, the offense is unstoppable. The defense has been good enough. That is the formula.
The Falcons made a big bet on Cousins and it is not working. He was supposed to be the missing piece for a team with Robinson, Drake London and Darnell Mooney. Instead the offense is average and the defense is below average. The NFC South is wide open, but Atlanta is not going to win it playing like this.