Bengals: 'Confident' Jake Browning could lessen blow of losing Joe Burrow
The Cincinnati Bengals fell to 5-5, 0-3 in AFC North play, and lost star quarterback Joe Burrow to a season-ending wrist injury in their Week 11 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. That said, Cincinnati's coaching staff has not lost hope, believing that Jake Browning can successfully take the wheel in place of Burrow.
"As you guys get to know him, [you'll see that], he's not scared," Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan told the Cincinnati Enquirer Tuesday in reference to Browning. "He's going to let the ball go. He's going to put it where it's supposed to be, and he's going to do it with confidence. And that gives me a lot of confidence. That gives our offense a lot of confidence."
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Head coach Zac Taylor concurred, stating that Browning's "strong suits" are that he's not "afraid at all to be aggressive."
"I thought what was so special about [Browning] was how confident and calm he was," Taylor said. "That allowed me to call everything that was on the menu and not have to dumb it down because a new guy's coming in the game. So that gave me confidence."
Browning, 27, came in for the Bengals in the second quarter of their Week 11 loss, his second appearance of the year. He finished the game 8-of-14 (57.1%) for 68 yards and one touchdown. Browning also ran for 40 yards.
In college, Browning was the starting quarterback for the Washington Huskies from 2015-18. Across that time, he averaged 3,074 passing yards, 23.5 passing touchdowns and a 150.5 passer rating per season, while completing a combined 64.6% of his passes. He also averaged four rushing touchdowns per season.
Browning's best campaign at Washington was 2016, when he threw for 3,430 yards and 43 touchdowns. He later went undrafted and didn't make his first NFL appearance until the Bengals' Week 1 loss to the Cleveland Browns this season. Browning's first NFL start will be this coming Sunday, when the Bengals host the division rival Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4).
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