Joe Burrow has played the first two preseason games for the Cincinnati Bengals. However, in Monday night's game against the Washington Commanders, Burrow played three series, which led an ESPN pundit to criticize head coach Zac Taylor.
One of the concerns that the Bengals have entering the 2025 NFL season is their slow starts. Over the last few seasons, Cincinnati has been in catch-up mode to try to overcome the sluggish manner in which they came out of the gate. Last season, it cost them the postseason.
As a result, Taylor and his coaching staff are shaking up how they're doing things in training camp and preseason. Nonetheless, it's not coming without criticism.
Was it smart to play Bengals QB Joe Burrow for three drives?
On Monday's edition of "First Take," co-host Stephen A. Smith criticized Taylor for leaving Burrow in for three drives during the preseason game against the Commanders. Meanwhile, Washington only left their star quarterback, Jayden Daniels, in for one drive and pulled him out of the game.
"I have a problem with Zac Taylor, period," Stephen A. Smith said. "I have a problem with him coaching in the offseason. I have a problem with him never having his team prepared to play in September. I certainly have a problem with him leaving Joe Burrow in that game for as long as he did. There were a couple of plays where he's running for his life. I don't know why he didn't just go down. It's a preseason game.
"Why are you taking those hits unnecessarily? You've been in the league long enough, Joe Burrow, to know better than that. Still, in all, you're Zac Taylor. You get on the field and you walk his ass off the field if you have to. I mean, [you've] got to be kidding me. It makes no sense whatsoever."
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The reason for Smith's take on Taylor is because the Bengals are going to have to be in shootouts this season if their defense doesn't improve. As a result, putting Burrow at risk made no sense for the ESPN personality.
"When you consider how God awful their defense is — I mean, awful, just bad — when you consider that, it just elevates the necessity of Joe Burrow being at peak level to perform, which means part of it is protecting him and making sure absolutely, positively, nothing happens to endanger him at all unnecessarily, because as he goes, this franchise goes," Smith added.