Joe Burrow an ‘offensive virtuoso’ while San Francisco 49ers play down trade panic after third straight loss
How the tables can turn. The San Francisco 49ers were hurtling towards the Super Bowl if you believed the school of thought over the first month of the NFL season, while the Cincinnati Bengals were limping to disappointment behind their injured star quarterback.
Their campaigns have since tilted somewhat. The 49ers, having started 5-0, were handed their third straight loss by the Bengals on Sunday, a 31-17 result lifting Cincinnati to 4-3 after they had lost three of their first four games.
Joe Burrow looked completely over the calf issue that hindered him in pre-season and back to his slick best as he completed 28 of 32 passes for 283 yards and three touchdowns alongside six carries for 43 yards on the ground.
“He’s a virtuoso of offensive football,” said Sky Sports NFL’s Jason Bell. “He is out there making plays. He has a great understanding of what he needs to do, how to get his offense in a great position and how to lead.
“You watch how he galvanises the troops on the sideline. He is exactly what you call a franchise quarterback.
“He gave you the full menu, what ever you wanted to eat he provided. This is what you wanted to see from him when he got healthy, he’s the guy who makes you right, it’s what great quarterback do.
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Logan Wilson intercepts a Brock Purdy pass before Ja’Marr Chase scores a touchdown for the Cincinnati Bengals against the San Francisco 49ers
“When you design a play, can you drop it in there? Can you place it correctly on the right shoulder under pressure? Can you step up in the pocket and get yards?”
Tee Higgins, one of seven pass-catchers on the day, suggested afterwards his quarterback was ‘not from this world’, ironically after Burrow had arrived in an alien mask to celebrate Halloween.
The former No 1 overall pick finished with a passer rating of 134.8 having recorded 18 straight completions in the first half alone.
“I would go to war with this guy, that’s what the ‘IT’ factor is,” added Sky Sports NFL’s Dante Hall. “Other than Patrick Mahomes, I think he’s the best quarterback in the league.”
The Bengals are now riding a three-game winning streak as they play catch-up from the bottom of the AFC North, which is currently ruled by the 6-2 Baltimore Ravens.
“Cincinnati are looking very very dangerous,” Hall continued.
“It’s only halfway through the season, if they continue to play like that they’ll be hot going into the playoffs, if they make it, at the right time.”
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Christian McCaffrey equalled an NFL record by scoring a touchdown in the 17th consecutive game for the San Francisco 49ers against the Cincinnati Bengals
Germaine Pratt and Logan Wilson both made remarkable reads to collect defining interceptions as 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy finished 22 of 31 for 365 yards, a touchdown and two picks having been ruled fit to play despite spending the early part of the week in concussion protocol.
The 49ers had averaged 33 points per game across their 5-0 start to the year, but have managed just 17 points in each of their three straight losses.
An ominous start pointing towards runaway Super Bowl contention has evolved in question marks.
“We know Brock Purdy is still a young quarterback, still trying to make it happen,” said Bell. “We know he’s got a great feel for the offense and great mobility, he did a lot with his legs but at times he just made mistakes.
“This is what happens as the season progresses, we get more tape as the defense and get to understand your tendencies, we get to do the things you aren’t necessarily comfortable doing.
“That’s what they’re doing. They’re flooding the field, taking away those intermediate routes, forcing Brock Purdy to throw out towards the numbers.”
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Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown makes a spinning, one-handed 16-yard touchdown catch against the Washington Commanders
Purdy had been unbeaten through 11 consecutive regular season starts since taking over from Jimmy Garoppolo mid-way through last season, that run coming to an end when the 49ers were beaten by the Cleveland Browns in Week Six.
Christian McCaffrey scored a touchdown for an NFL record-tying 17th successive game but was limited to just 54 yards on the ground.
“I think there’s a lot of pressure on Purdy,” said Sky Sports NFL’s Phoebe Schecter. “He’s at home, it’s a big one for him, sometimes when you’re trying to make something happen you make mistakes.
“Even as a head coach, you’ve got your play-call sheet, your highlights, and you get so stuck in the moment you forget the bigger picture of ‘hey, let’s go back to CMC and do what we’re really good at’.”
Hall added: “They’re putting too much on his plate. He started out unbeaten and I think they felt like he was Joe Burrow, but he’s not, he’s a seventh-rounder for a reason.”
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan played down concern over is team’s recent struggles and suggested their form would not impact his plans ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline.
“No, none of this changes anything with the trade deadline,” he said. “How we played today or how we played these last three weeks. I do believe we have the answers in our building. I believe we have good players. I believe we have good coaches. It’s up to me to get them to do better.
“I thought we started out pretty good, but there’s some things that we haven’t been able to hide here these last few weeks and that’s why we’ve got to continue to push them in every aspect because some people do go on these losing streaks and they don’t have those answers and you’re just living in hope.”
