Joe Burrow Praised by Bengals OC Callahan: 'He Wants to Take Your Freaking Soul'

As Joe Burrow prepares to lead the Cincinnati Bengals into the playoffs for the first time, his teammates and coaches are feeding off his confidence. 

“All the confidence and the smirking, he wants to take your freaking soul,” Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan told Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. “People feel that.”

Burrow enters the postseason as the hottest quarterback in football. He threw for 971 yards and eight touchdowns in wins over the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs to clinch the AFC North before sitting out a Week 18 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

The second-year quarterback finished with 4,611 yards and 34 touchdowns against 14 interceptions, blossoming as a superstar after tearing his ACL during his rookie campaign. He's likely to finish third in MVP voting behind Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady.

Starting with his breakout 2019 season at LSU, Burrow's career has been defined by an unshakable confidence. He carries himself and plays as if he has no shred of doubt in himself, a personality trait that sometimes leads to turnovers but often creates big plays.

“It’s rare what he has,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said. “It’s hard to describe. That’s the best way to put it. It’s hard to describe. You have to experience the full scope of it to really understand it.”

The Bengals are currently listed as 5.5-point favorites over the Las Vegas Raiders at DraftKings Sportsbook. Cincinnati has not won a playoff game since the 1990 season.