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Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has a fresh look ahead of the 2024 NFL season. And social media can't get enough of it.
The All-Pro passer arrived to training camp Tuesday sporting a buzz cut and bleach-blonde hair, drawing comparisons to rapper Eminem and WWE champion Cody Rhodes, among others. It was also Burrow's first practice since being cleared for contact following a season-ending wrist injury last November.
Of course, the Bengals don't care how he looks in the mirror; their only concern is how he looks on the field. Cincinnati enters this season with the fifth-shortest Super Bowl odds across our best sports betting sites thanks, largely, to Burrow, who's priced among the front-runners by the NFL MVP odds.
Those are lofty goals for a team that missed the playoffs last season. But these new-look Bengals are a cut above what we saw on the field a y ear ago.
Which Burrow will we see in 2024?
Earlier this week, I highlighted the Bengals among the best bets in my Super Bowl predictions for two reasons: a healthy Burrow and an improved cast around him.
That first part is the most important one and, through four seasons, has been tough to come by. Burrow missed six games as a rookie after tearing the ACL and MCL in his left knee. Last year, he battled through a calf injury early in the season before tearing a ligament in his right wrist that sidelined him for the final seven games.
It's a shame, too, because he was finally starting to look like himself before that Week 11 injury. Over his final five starts, Burrow averaged 253 passing yards with 10 touchdowns to just three interceptions, leading the Bengals to a 3-2 record that included wins over the San Francisco 49ers and Buffalo Bills.
That was reminiscent of his stellar 2022 campaign, when he ranked second in passing yards per game (279.7), touchdowns (35), and completion percentage (68.3%). He finished fourth in MVP voting and beat award winner Patrick Mahomes in the AFC Championship to clinch Cincinnati's first Super Bowl berth since 1988.
That was the last time we saw Burrow healthy across a full season. Unlike his calf injury last year, it'd be surprising if his wrist injury lingers for the 27-year-old, who is firmly in his prime with something to prove in 2024.
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | bet365 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| +900 | +1000 ?? | +900 | +900 | +900 |
Burrow's market-best +1000 MVP odds from FanDuel represent an implied win probability of 9.09%. A winning $10 bet at those odds would return a profit of $100 if Burrow is named MVP at the end of the 2024-25 NFL season.
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Fresh faces abound in Cincinnati
Burrow isn't the only one sporting a new look in 2024. So, too, is the roster and coaching staff around him.
One of the biggest issues in the Burrow era has been pass protection, as his 148 sacks are the second-most by any QB since he was drafted in 2020. So the Bengals spent a first-round pick on Amarius Mims, a 6-foot-7, 340-pound mauler who allowed just six pressures in 402 career pass-blocking snaps at Georgia.
They also added two beefy defensive tackles in veteran Sheldon Rankins and rookie Kris Jenkins, and they signed safeties Geno Stone and Vonn Bell to bolster a defense that ranked in the bottom six in EPA per play and success rate last season.
That was a marked decline from the year before, when Cincinnati ranked in the top 10 in both metrics. That seems like a more realistic outcome this year under standout defensive coordin ator Lou Anarumo – the NFL's longest-tenured DC who curiously didn't get a sniff as a head coach this offseason.
Conversely, the Tennessee Titans hired away offensive coordinator Brian Callahan to be their new head coach. The Bengals quickly turned to quarterbacks coach Dan Pitcher, who has a strong relationship with Burrow, to keep that unit on track.
I wouldn't expect much of a dip for this offense, which is firmly a Zac Taylor and Burrow-led operation. With star wideouts Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins both hungry for a new deal, don't be surprised if this is the most explosive version yet of this Cincinnati attack.
| Market | DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | bet365 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super Bowl | +1300 | +1500 ?? | +1400 | +1300 | +1200 |
| AFC Championship | +700 | +750 ?? | +700 | +700 | +700 |
| AFC North | +145 | +165 | +165 | +145 | +165 |
| To make playoffs | -260 | -220 ?? | -250 | -240 | -240 |
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A familiar foe awaits
Here's an unavoidable truth for teams in today's NFL: your path to the Super Bowl runs through Kansas City.
No team has risen to that challenge better than Cincinnati, which has won three of five games against the Chiefs (including the postseason) since Burrow's rookie year. Those three wins are tied for the most by any team against Mahomes since he became the starter in 2019.
In fact, Burrow and Tom Brady are the only quarterbacks to beat Mahomes in the playoffs. The Bengals engineered a comeback win in the 2022 AFC Championship, and they might have secured another conference title a year later if not for a questionable penalty in the closing seconds.
Clearly, Cincinnati is a serious threat to the Chiefs' dynastic reign, and Burrow is at the center of it all. If he's feeling (and looking) his best entering the 2024 NFL season … watch out.
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