Bengals coaches: Burrow 'checks off a lot of boxes'

Field Level Media
17 Jan 2020, 01:55 GMT+10

The Cincinnati Bengals are not required to divulge the first pick of the 2020 NFL Draft until April 23, however a few of their coaches were not shy about gushing over the presumptive No. 1 selection.

Bengals quarterbacks coach Andy Van Pelt was quite complimentary when discussing the Heisman Trophy-winning Joe Burrow, who was under center for LSU during its national championship season.

"He definitely checks off a lot of boxes early on in the evaluation process," Van Pelt told the team's official website. "He obviously looks like a very intriguing guy."

Van Pelt wasn't alone. Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan was also quite positive regarding the 23-year-old Burrow, who threw for 5,671 yards and 60 touchdowns in 15 games this season.

"He's got natural pocket feel; he feels it," Callahan said. "It seems like he never takes his eyes off down the field. He extends the play really, really well. He's a lot faster than you might assume when you see him running away from all those SEC guys. He's got incredible up-field accuracy. The ball hardly ever hits the ground in a game, which is rare. He just naturally puts the ball in places where those guys can make plays."

Quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Ryan Finley struggled behind center for the Bengals, who finished with a 2-14 record.

Dalton completed 59.5 percent of his passes for 3,494 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

Finley went 41 of 87 (47.1 percent) for 474 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions in three games.

--Field Level Media

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