The Cincinnati Bengals struggled to establish their running game during their 22-17 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Star quarterback Joe Burrow didn’t appear particularly concerned about the lack of offensive balance after the game, but one of his coaches has a different perspective.
While Burrow seems content with playing to the team’s strengths and throwing the ball as much as they need to, one Bengals coach seems to think that’s not exactly a sustainable strategy.
‘Let’s throw the ball more’
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Following Sunday’s game, Burrow was asked about the team’s offensive imbalance, particularly given its struggles on the ground.
The Bengals managed just 18 rushing yards on 13 designed runs compared to the 58 passing plays it ran during the game. His response was pretty straightforward: “Let’s throw the ball more.”
“Because I know we’re great at it,” Burrow said, via a [transcript from the team](https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/joe-burrow-on-lack-of-offensive-balance-my-response-is-throw-it-more). “Because I know that’s what I do best, and we’re really pass-protecting really well right now. Obviously, we’d like to get more out of the run game, but, you know, I know we’ll make it work.”
Burrow ultimately completed 39 of 54 passes for 428 yards, showing that the Bengals were able to move the ball effectively through the air despite Ja’Marr Chase missing much of the game with a concussion and Tee Higgins being sidelined for a significant portion of the second half.
‘Not Sustainable’
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While Burrow might be okay with the idea of simply throwing the ball more, offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher disagrees with that strategy.
“The way we played the game yesterday is not sustainable for long-term success,” Pitcher said via Sports Illustrated. “I do think we chose to play the game yesterday in a way that gave us the best chance to win yesterday. We need to look at what we’re doing well and, more importantly, what we’re not doing well, and set us on a course to get better.”
While that may have been effective in Sunday’s game, Pitcher thinks the team needs to make changes.
“I think we just need to be a more complementary offense, and we need to execute in the other phases so that we have the continued confidence to call those plays, so that we don’t have to drop back as much as we did (Sunday),” Pitcher said. “But as I mentioned before, in any given game, we’re gonna make the decisions and call the plays that we think give us the best chance to win that game, and then when the clock hits zero and you have a chance to digest it and regroup and really determine the issues with the benefit of level head and hindsight, you move forward.”