2 min read • February 01, 2022
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Nearly 15 months after tearing the ACL and MCL in his left knee, Joe Burrow will be playing in the Bengals' first Super Bowl since 1988.
In a season in which many did not know if he would be ready for Week 1, Burrow missed only Week 18 and finished first in completion percentage (70.4) and third in passing yards per game (288.2).
When the injury happened in late November 2020, Dr. David Chao, ProFootballDoc, said he had confidence Burrow would be ready for the start of the season.
Burrow threw just one pass during the preseason, but started Week 1 and didn't miss a game until Week 18, when the Bengals had already clinched a playoff berth.
No two ACL recoveries are the same, but players' mobility typically improves in the latter half of the season, Chao said.
Here are Burrow's stats for the first half of the year and the second half of the year:
First 8 games: Completion rate 67.9%, 276.9 passing yards per game, 20 touchdowns, 9 interceptions, 20 sacks, 43 rushing yards
Last 8 games: Completion rate 72.6%, 299.5 passing yards per game, 14 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, 31 sacks, 75 rushing yards
While the passing yards per game and completion rate improved in the second half of the season, he was also sacked 11 more times than the previous 8 games.
In fact, Burrow was sacked 51 times during the regular season, the most in the league. Ryan Tannehill ranked second with 47 sacks and Matt Ryan was third with 40 sacks.
That stat alone indicates his surgically repaired left knee is healthy and durable.
After getting sacked 9 times in the Divisional Round win over the Titans, the 2020 No. 1 overall pick was sacked just once by the Chiefs.
He escaped multiple sacks during the game and made plays rolling out, something he will likely have to do against the Rams vaunted pass rush combination of Aaron Donald and Von Miller.
The right side of the line is the cause of Burrow being sacked the most in the NFL as RG has been a problem spot all year while RT Riley Reiff has been out since Week 14 due to an ankle injury.
This points to value in the Burrow rushing prop on FanDuel which is listed at 12.5. With the confidence in his knee and the poor health of the right side of the OL, expect Burrow to eclipse 12 yards rushing against the Rams as he is now confident on his previously injured knee.
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