Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow isn’t happy right now coming out of that shocking overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
Neither are teammates such as Tee Higgins as head coach Zac Taylor draws the ire of fans.
Higgins was one of many players asked after the game about Taylor’s decision to run the ball three straight times while setting for a field goal attempt of longer than 50 yards in overtime.
While trying to keep it measured and fair, Higgins still said quite a bit.
“Personally, I think we should have gone a little bit more aggressive in the first and second downs just to try to get Evan in better field goal range,” Higgins said, according to Ben Baby of ESPN. “You know he makes those from that deep. I’m not putting it on him at all, you know what I’m saying. So it’s a team effort, we lost as a team, but we could have did a better job at putting him in better field goal range to make it an easier kick.”
Indeed, considering Burrow finished the day with a 30-of-39 mark with 392 yards and five touchdowns against one interception.
While onlookers will bemoan the pick and a few offensive hiccups like sacks, the numbers speak for themselves — against a defense like Baltimore.
And even looking beyond the numbers, the Bengals have one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the league and two of the best wide receivers in the game, plus an assortment of other weapons.
Handing the ball off three straight times and not letting Burrow go attempt to win it deserves every bit of criticism it’s receiving, including from players.
