Bengals' Joe Burrow can cement place among top young QBs in AFC title game - Cincinnati Bengals Blog- ESPN

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals coach Zac Taylor was almost at a loss for words when asked to describe quarterback Joe Burrow.

Fortunately, tight end C.J. Uzomah had a few. One of them isn’t suitable for print.

“Excuse my French, but this f---ing guy’s a beast,” Uzomah said Sunday.

That was Uzomah’s initial thought when the Bengals drafted Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft. On Saturday, Burrow showed why he leaves people speechless or brings them to profanity. He overcame nine sacks to steer Cincinnati into position for a 19-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans, bringing the Bengals their first AFC Championship Game berth since 1988.

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Burrow, 25, will be able to enhance his status as one of the NFL's top young quarterbacks on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs (3 p.m. ET, CBS).

With the win over the Titans, Burrow became the first quarterback who was a former No. 1 overall draft pick to reach a conference championship game in his first or second season. Taylor said the question of how Burrow can be so mature and play this well despite his relative inexperience is what always leaves him struggling for a good answer.

“He’s rare,” Taylor said in a news conference Sunday. “It’s impossible to put into words why he is why he is.”

When a team drafts someone with the top overall pick, it’s with the expectation the player will be a transcendent presence. Cincinnati’s win over the Titans was an example of what Burrow brings to the table.

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