Despite late trade rumors and early speculation book-ending a canceled pro day and virtual reality, the Bengals did Thursday night what everybody said they were going to do for the past four months when they took LSU quarterback Joe Burrow with the first pick in the NFL's first-ever remote draft.
Using their first overall No. 1 selection in 17 years, the Bengals continued to revamp their franchise with a quarterback coming off the best statistical college year of all-time during an undefeated national championship season Burrow fired 60 touchdown passes against just six interceptions with a blistering 80 completion percentage.
He joins Archie Griffin and Carson Palmer as the Bengals' only Heisman Trophy winners and a roster that has already undergone a massive facelift this offseason with the addition of six starters in free agency.
Burrow, a product of Athens, Ohio, where he won the state's Mr. Football while leading the Bulldogs to their only Division III state championship game, may be as popular a pick as Ohio State's Griffin, the Columbus, Ohio native and only winner of two Heismans. His state-wide charisma may have been as important as his laser shows when the Bengals blunted any attempts from the Dolphins to trade up from No. 5 to draft Burrow
Who-Dey Nation is hoping the Ohio-bred and Ohio State transfer is a composite of their best quarterbacks ever by combining Ken Anderson's uncanny accuracy, Boomer Esiason's swaggering leadership, Andy Dalton's agile acumen and Palmer's overall No. 1 pedigree. He stands to become the fourth Bengals rookie quarterback to make an Opening Day start with Dalton, Dewey Warren and Greg Cook.
"One of the most impressive things to me was his production last season never dipped," said Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan. "I was waiting to see the flaw, waiting to see the hole. The reality is, he only got better as the season went on. Against the best teams, he played his best."
The fit of player and team seems never better. The always underdog Bengals were formed with a chip on their shoulder in expansion when Paul Brown came to Cincinnati to start a franchise after he was fired in Cleveland from the team named after him. Burrow won a national championship and Heisman Trophy answering questions all the way and famously used his locker-room cigar as an exclamation point to celebrate LSU's hardware.
The two chips collided early in the draft process when there was speculation Burrow would lobby for a trade out of Cincinnati because it was allegedly a dead end for quarterbacks.
So the narrative went. But the Bengals, off a $150 million spree in free agency, ignored the buzz and went to work re-building a franchise that just four years ago had been to the playoffs six out of eight years.
The only team since the 1970 merger to draft four quarterbacks that started at least 97 games for the team that drafted them (according to Elias), the Bengals have set it up so Burrow has some weapons. If Burrow takes the field in the opener with wide receivers A.J. Green and Tyler Boyd and running back Joe Mixon, according to Elias he'll be the first rookie quarterback selected in the top five since 1967 to start a game with at least two players with multiple 1,000-yard receiving seasons and one player with multiple 1,000-yard rushing seasons.
"I love it when I hear people challenging Joe like that," said Athens High School head coach Nathan White, Burrow's offensive coordinator back in the day. "There aren't a lot of Division I players from this area and that was the always the knock on him. That he didn't have the competition. Then when he went to LSU and it was he couldn't play down there and I'm just wondering when it's ever going to stop. So I just love it when I hear that stuff about him and the Bengals."
Images of the Bengals' 2020 first round pick, quarterback Joe Burrow from the NFL combine and his college career at LSU and Ohio State.
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9), a senior who is considered a frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy, warms up for his last NCAA college football game in Tiger Stadium, against Texas A&M in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Nov. 30, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
NCAA college football player and Heisman Trophy finalist, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow talks to the media during a press conference before the start of the Heisman Trophy on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2019 in New York. (AP Photo/Jason Szenes)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) before an NCAA college football game in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman)
NCAA college football player, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, left, hugs his mother, Robin, after he is announced as the Heisman Trophy winner, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2019, in New York. Burrow's father, Jim, is at right. (Todd Van Emst/Pool Photo via AP)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow warms up before the first half of the Peach Bowl NCAA semifinal college football playoff game between LSU and Oklahoma, Saturday, Dec. 28, 2019, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Danny Karnik)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow holds the trophy as safety Grant Delpit looks on after a NCAA College Football Playoff national championship game against Clemson, Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, in New Orleans. LSU won 42-25. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, who is considered a frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy, acknowledges the crowd as he is pulled from his last game in Tiger Stadium, in the fourth quarter of the team's NCAA college football game against Texas A&M in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Nov. 30, 2019. LSU won 50-7. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
NCAA college football player, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow talks to the media during a news conference after winning the Heisman Trophy, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2019, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason Szenes)
FILE - In this Dec. 7, 2019, file photo, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) runs against Georgia during the second half of the Southeastern Conference championship NCAA college football game, in Atlanta. Burrow is a hero on LSU's Baton Rouge campus, but he hasn't seen much of it because he took graduate courses online. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow passes against Clemson during the second half of a NCAA College Football Playoff national championship game Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, right, celebrates with wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr. after scoring against Clemson during the first half of a NCAA College Football Playoff national championship game Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow speaks during a press conference at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) looks to pass the ball in the second half of an NCAA college football game against Louisiana Tech in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018. LSU won 38-21. (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman)
LSU head coach Ed Orgeron, left, celebrates a win against UCF with quarterback Joe Burrow, right, after a Fiesta Bowl NCAA college football game Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2019, in Glendale, Ariz. LSU defeated UCF 40-32. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
LSU head coach Ed Orgeron congratulates quarterback Joe Burrow (9) after he scored a touchdown in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Utah State in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) runs as Alabama defensive lineman Phidarian Mathis (48) chases him in the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, in Tuscaloosa , Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) works out during their NCAA college football practice in Baton Rouge, La., Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer talks to on his headset as quarterback Joe Burrow (10) talks to a different person, during a time out in the second half of an NCAA college football game against Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Oct. 14, 2017. Ohio State won 56-14. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) looks for a receiver in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Northwestern State, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019, in Baton Rouge, La. (AP Photo/Patrick Dennis)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow greets fans as he and the team walk down the hill to Tiger Stadium before an NCAA college football game against Northwestern State, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019, in Baton Rouge, La. (AP Photo/Patrick Dennis)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) celebrates after connecting with teammate wide receiver Justin Jefferson (2) for a touchdown against Texas during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Ohio State quarterbacks J.T. Barrett, left, and Joe Burrow drop back to pass during spring NCAA college football practice Tuesday, March 7, 2017, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) passes for a first down against Mississippi State during the first half of their NCAA college football game in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019. In addition to LSU winning 36-13, Burrow threw four touchdowns to break the LSU season record with 29. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, left, scrambles away from Vanderbilt defensive lineman Dayo Odeyingbo (10) in the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
LSU head coach Ed Orgeron hugs quarterback Joe Burrow after defeating Alabama in an NCAA football game Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019, in Tuscaloosa , Ala. LSU won 46-41. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrows (9) hands the ball to running back Tyrion Davis-Price (3) during an NCAA football game against Georgia Southern, Saturday, August 31, 2019, in Baton Rouge, La. (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) is carried by LSU nose tackle Tyler Shelvin (72) after an NCAA football game against AlabamaSunday, Nov. 10, 2019, in Tuscaloosa , Ala. LSU won 46-41. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow (9) warms up before an NCAA college football game against Florida in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Oct. 12, 2019. (AP Photo/Bill Feig)
Former Bengals secondary coach Kevin Coyle, a 15-year NFL veteran, is LSU's defensive analyst and he heartily endorsed Burrow to his old team.
"He's a special guy. He can do so many things and his combination of mental and physical attributes put him in the category that he can be a great player at the next level," Coyle said. "The more he played, the better he got. Great decision-making. Great pocket presence and awareness. A lot of the plays we got into were just a direct result of him understanding the scheme so well, understanding how to get in the right play and right read. That will serve him well in the NFL.
"He's very, very sharp. He's very accurate, able to throw somebody open. Extend plays. He's very tough mentally. He believes in himself and he transfers that to his teammates … He's got what Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers have. That ability to throw it a split-second faster."
Coyle remembers during the week of the Peach Bowl as the Tigers prepared to play Oklahoma. As if it were a harbinger of Thursday's selection, the teams staged a remote three-point shooting contest at their respective hotels. Burrow, an all-state point guard at Athens, was the Tigers' last man to shoot and he needed to hit some for LSU to virtually pull it out.
"He gets up there and he's like Larry Bird. Bang. Bang. Bang. And we win," Coyle said. "I think he wears (the chip) more in his heart and in his mind than he does on his sleeve. Deep down he's just a fierce competitor. A real alpha dog. A competitive guy."
On this night, anyway, the underdogs were top cats.
