Joe Burrow's Post-Bye Week Numbers Suggest Bengals Offense Could Explode

The Cincinnati Bengals have one of the NFL's most efficient offenses through the first five weeks of the season. Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins have met the lofty expectations set for them before the season. 

The Bengals have the #2 completion percentage while having a top-10 passing-attempts mark through five games. Burrow also ranks as the seventh-least-sacked quarterback in the NFL with a 4.55% QB sack rate. 

Burrow has exceeded 200 yards in four of five games, and he threw for 428 yards in the week four loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He threw for just 190 yards against the Dolphins. With the bye week approaching, I looked at Burrow’s track record in the three games after the bye week, and based on recent numbers, Burrow will not slow down from week seven to week nine. 

Since 2022, Joe Burrow has been elite in the three games after his first bye week. Joe Goodberry shared stats on his and Zac Taylor’s post-bye records, which piqued my interest in Burrow’s specific numbers. 

In 2022, Burrow averaged 303.7 yards per game in the three post-bye games, completing 66.3% of his passes. He also threw for seven touchdowns and two interceptions, throwing both interceptions against the Steelers in Week 11. More importantly, Cincinnati went 3-0 in those games. 

The next season, Burrow was even better, averaging 326 yards per game and completing 74.1% of his passes while repeating his 7-2 TD-INT ratio from the year before. The Bengals went 2-1 in those three games, losing to the Texans in week 10. 

In 2024, Burrow had an MVP-caliber season, averaging 316.3 yards per game and throwing nine touchdowns and four interceptions. He completed 73% of his passes, and the Bengals went 2-1, losing to the Steelers in Week 13. 

Burrow played in only one of the Bengals' three games after the first bye of the season in 2025 with his turf toe injury, throwing for 261 yards and two touchdowns and completing 24 of 46 passes in Cincinnati’s win over the Baltimore Ravens. 

Cincinnati’s three games after the bye will be against the Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans, and Atlanta Falcons, all of which allow more than 325 yards per game. The Ravens have the #18 pass defense, while the Falcons are #27, allowing 248.4 pass yards per game. 

Burrow will have ample opportunity not only to win three games after the bye, but also to post career-best performances and continue his trend of averaging 300 or more yards per game in the three games after the bye.