With The First Pick
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Chase Young v. Joe Burrow: Battle for first overall pick in 2020 NFL Draft

By Seth Steere

ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announces a pick by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announces a pick by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI – NOVEMBER 16: Joe Burrow #9 of the LSU Tigers runs with the ball as Jacquez Jones #10 of the Mississippi Rebels defends during the first half of a game at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on November 16, 2019, in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI – NOVEMBER 16: Joe Burrow #9 of the LSU Tigers runs with the ball as Jacquez Jones #10 of the Mississippi Rebels defends during the first half of a game at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on November 16, 2019, in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Argument for Joe Burrow

If you need a quarterback, you take a quarterback. Andy Dalton isn’t going to miraculously get better and hoping he does is just a fantasy. Average at best, Dalton led the Bengals to 5 winning season his first 5 years in the NFL, but nothing came from it, no playoff wins and he only threw for over 4,000 yards in one of those seasons.

In those playoff games (4 total games), Dalton threw 1 touchdown, 6 interceptions and he completed only 55.7% of his passes, compared to his regular-season average of 62.2%. Showing up in the regular season is only half the battle, it’s one thing to make the playoffs and another to win in the playoffs. With Dalton at quarterback, you’re going to need a lot of talent surrounding him to elevate his play.

Unlike Dalton, Burrow seems to show up and show out in the biggest games. In LSU’s 4 biggest games (Texas, Florida, Auburn, and Alabama) Burrow’s averages are 370 yards, 2.8 touchdowns, and a completion percentage of 80.7%. There isn’t a moment too big for him and he has proven so on multiple occasions.

Landing a quarterback is the most important thing you can do. If you draft a quarterback, the thought behind it is that he’ll be leading your franchise for the next 10–15 years. When you have the first overall pick and you draft a quarterback, the hope is that that guy can be the one who not only takes you to the playoffs, but he can be a guy who leads you to the playoffs; Burrow’s has proven he can do so.

The Bengals need a change of culture similar to the way LSU needed a change of culture. LSU was always a team that would pound the rock, with the hopes that their defense could stop the opponent’s offense enough to win the game. With Burrow at the helm, things have changed; he is currently leading one of the most explosive offenses in college football.

Next. Penn State vs. Ohio State: 2020 NFL Draft stock report. dark

Last season the Tigers averaged 228.5 yards per game through the air compared to 386.8 this year. Part of that growth can be attributed to the passing game coordinator, Joe Brady, but it’s not always about the “X’s and O’s” sometimes the “Jimmy and Joes” need to step up and that has been the case for Burrow.

As stated earlier the Bengals need someone to come in a change the mentality in that locker room; Joe Burrow has been a winner ever since high school and that’s exactly the kind of guy the city of Cincinnati needs to lead them back to the glory days of the ’80s and ’90s.

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