Joe Burrow isn’t the NFL’s highest-paid player for no reason. The Bengals quarterback has cemented his status as one of the NFL greats at just 26 years of age. But if you only had to look at his current season statistics regarding his $55 million/year contract, you might disagree. The quarterback has had more forgettable games this season than positive ones. And he is yet to reach his 2022 form that saw him lead the Bengals to a Super Bowl after 33 years.

But veteran analyst Stephen A. Smith isn’t jumping to a conclusion this quickly. He believes the Bengals and Burrow still have much to deliver despite their slow start. And he has underlined a few interesting points behind that belief, especially from two years ago.

Stephen A. Smith counts on Joe Burrow

Joe Burrow is slowly picking up the pace after a rough start and a terrible sub-100 display in the season opener. The Bengals’ season isn’t going smoothly either, as they are only as good as 3-3 despite winning both of their last games. Talking to ESPN’s First Take show, NFL analyst Stephen A. Smith acknowledged the facts, adding that he knows the Bengals’ last-positioned offense and 27th-positioned scoring offense.

However, he mentioned a few points that support the logic behind Smith’s hope in the young QB. When asked which AFC North team he feels most confident about, he said: “To me, it’s the Bengals.” Smith took almost no time to answer while agreeing that they currently have one of the worst offenses in the league.

But Smith had a solid reason to think that way.

“But I’m just using this to reiterate my belief in Joe Burrow,” he went straight to the point. “Two years ago, Super Bowl, last year AFC Championship game,” Stephen had his key takeaway from the Bengals’ past seasons. “I’m saying in recent memory they’ve started out struggling at the beginning, and then last year they went 12 and two in the last 14 games,” Smith explained his take on the team and the quarterback.

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“So I look at it from the standpoint that Joe Burrow sits up there, he doesn’t quite go Aaron Rogers on you saying relax. He embraces the level of urgency early on that may exist because of the hole that they put themselves in. But they respond, they find a way. And I think with Joe Burrow, with Chase, with Higgins, I’m going to believe that this is the team in the AFC North to pay attention to,” Smith was all clear with his perspective. He also acknowledged the role of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in the team’s journey.

When you sit back and think about it, Smith is not wrong. Burrow is really of that quality, and the Bengals have come back from worse starts and nearly made a miracle just a few years back.

Joe Burrow’s fairytale run to the Super Bowl LVI

No matter how much you think of it, getting over the path the Bengals climbed before reaching the 2022 Super Bowl is hard. Despite falling short in their first two games, the Bengals went into a 14-game win streak in the regular season to seal their playoff spot after 33 years, breaking all odds.

Their playoff run began with a defeat as well. Still, they went on a rampage before eventually facing the defending champs, the Kansas City Chiefs, in the AFC Conference championship game. In a typical Bengals fashion, Joe Burrow and Co. overturned their 17-point deficit to nick the game in overtime after intercepting a Patrick Mahomes pass and finishing the move with a wild last-second field goal. They were heading to the NFL after 33 years, conquering their first playoffs during the same period.

Although they lost their chance to earn their very first Super Bowl following the defeat against the LA Rams, the 2022 Bengals season was one of the wildest turnarounds in NFL history. And the memory is still very much alive for Stephen A. Smith, the reason behind his confidence in Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. Stephen wouldn’t count out the Bengals yet, and after getting his insights, neither should you!

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