History of Joe Burrow in Timeline

Joe Burrow is a professional American football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals. He gained prominence playing college football, first for Ohio State and then LSU, where he won the Heisman Trophy and a national championship in his senior year. Burrow was subsequently drafted first overall by the Bengals in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

1987: Wade Wilson's Playoff Sack Record

In 1987, Wade Wilson set the playoff record for most times sacked in a single postseason with 14 sacks.

1988: Bengals reached Super Bowl XXIII

In 1988, the Bengals reached Super Bowl XXIII. This was their first appearance since Super Bowl XXIII in 1988.

1990: End of Bengals' Playoff Win Drought

In 1990, the Bengals' playoff win drought, which had been active since the 1990 season, came to an end with a 26–19 win against the Las Vegas Raiders in the Wild Card Round.

1990: Ended Playoff Drought

In 2021, Joe Burrow led the Bengals to their first playoff win since 1990, ending the longest active drought in the four major North American sports.

1993: Most Sacks in Playoff Game

In 1993, Burrow tied Warren Moon for the most times sacked in a playoff game with nine sacks.

December 10, 1996: Joseph Lee Burrow Born

On December 10, 1996, Joseph Lee Burrow was born. He is now a professional football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals.

2001: Most Passing Yards in School History

In a Week 2 road trip to ninth-ranked Texas in 2019, Burrow threw for 471 yards, four touchdowns, and an interception. His 471 yards were the second-most in school history and the most since Rohan Davey's 528 against Alabama in 2001.

2002: Attended Rose Bowl

In 2002, Joe Burrow attended the Rose Bowl at age five because his father was an assistant coach for the University of Nebraska.

2003: Moved to North Dakota

In 2003, the Burrow family moved to North Dakota when his father was hired as the defensive coordinator at North Dakota State University in Fargo.

2006: Tied for Largest Comeback in Conference Championship

In 2006, the Bengals overcame a 21–3 deficit to win 27–24 in overtime. The 18-point comeback was tied with the Indianapolis Colts in 2006 for the largest in a conference championship.

2006: Broke Brennan's Record

Joe Burrow finished his 2019 season with 60 passing touchdowns, which broke the single-season FBS record previously set by Colt Brennan's 58 in 2006.

2007: Tom Brady's Season

In 2007, Tom Brady recorded at least 4,500 passing yards, 40 passing touchdowns, and fewer than 10 interceptions.

2009: Record for Passing Yards

In 2019, Joe Burrow had 5,671 passing yards, which is now tied with Case Keenum in 2009 for fourth-most in an FBS season.

2011: Aaron Rodgers' Season

In 2011, Aaron Rodgers recorded at least 4,500 passing yards, 40 passing touchdowns, and fewer than 10 interceptions.

2011: Attended Athens High School

In 2011, Joe Burrow attended Athens High School, leading the school to three straight playoff appearances.

2012: Ranked Higher Since 2012 BCS National Championship Game

When LSU played Alabama on November 9, 2019, the two schools were ranked higher than they had been since they had played in the 2012 BCS National Championship Game; LSU was ranked second and Alabama third when the season's inaugural College Football Playoff rankings had been released the prior week.

May 27, 2014: Committed to Ohio State

On May 27, 2014, Joe Burrow committed to Ohio State to play football.

2015: First Winning Record Since 2015

Against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16, Burrow completed 37 of 46 passes, threw for a career-high 525 yards, while also throwing four touchdowns without an interception, for a career-high 143.2 passer rating in the 41–21 win. The victory in this game was Cincinnati's ninth of the year, clinching the first winning record for the team since the 2015 season, and put the Bengals in first place of the AFC North.

2015: Redshirted at Ohio State

In 2015, Joe Burrow redshirted his first year at Ohio State.

2015: Rated as a Recruit

Joe Burrow was rated as a four-star football recruit in the class of 2015, according to the 247Sports Composite.

2015: Bengals clinch AFC North and Playoff Berth

The next week against the Kansas City Chiefs, Burrow threw for 446 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions in the 34–31 win. The win helped the Bengals clinch the AFC North and a playoff berth for the first time since 2015.

May 18, 2018: Transferred to LSU

On May 18, 2018, Joe Burrow transferred to Louisiana State University (LSU) after realizing he wouldn't be the starting quarterback at Ohio State.

2018: Named LSU's Starting Quarterback

In 2018, Joe Burrow was named the starting quarterback for LSU as a redshirt junior. He led the Tigers to a 10-3 record and a Fiesta Bowl win.

2018: SEC Analyst Opinion

In 2018, SEC analyst Jordan Rodgers opined that Burrow was "wildly inconsistent, and frankly very poor against good competition".

December 14, 2019: Awarded 2019 Heisman Trophy

On December 14, 2019, Joe Burrow was awarded the 2019 Heisman Trophy and received many other awards during college football award season. His Heisman acceptance speech referred to the rampant poverty and food insecurity affecting his hometown; shortly after his speech, the Athens County food bank was the recipient of $450,000 in donations.

December 2019: School Football Stadium Renamed

In December 2019, the Athens City School District school board unanimously approved a measure to rename the school's football stadium in honor of Joe Burrow.

2019: Sports Illustrated Story

According to a 2019 Sports Illustrated story, "The Burrow athletic lineage dates back nearly a century."

2019: College Football Playoff Semifinal Game

During LSU's College Football Playoff semifinal game against fourth-ranked Oklahoma in the 2019 Peach Bowl, Burrow threw for seven touchdowns during the first half of the contest and had a total of 493 passing yards – along with scoring a rushing touchdown – in a 63–28 victory for the Tigers. Burrow's eight total touchdowns were all scored within the first 35 minutes of the 60-minute game, after which he was taken out for the sake of giving him rest.

2019: Attention of Scouts Reconsidered

In 2019, Burrow's season was cited as helping draw more attention to scouts to reconsider their evaluation of him.

2019: Named LSU's Starting Quarterback and SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week

In 2019, Joe Burrow was named LSU's starting quarterback. In the season opener against Georgia Southern, Burrow threw for 278 yards and five touchdowns and was named SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week.

2019: Set Single-Season Passing Touchdowns Record

Joe Burrow finished his 2019 season with 60 passing touchdowns, which broke the single-season FBS record previously set by Colt Brennan's 58 in 2006.

July 31, 2020: Signed Rookie Contract

On July 31, 2020, Joe Burrow signed his four-year rookie contract worth $36.1 million with the Cincinnati Bengals.

2020: Wore Athens Area Code T-Shirt at NFL Draft

During the 2020 NFL draft, Joe Burrow wore a T-shirt with the number 740 in reference to the area code for Athens.

2020: Selected first overall in the 2020 NFL draft

In 2020, Joe Burrow was selected first overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in the NFL draft after a successful college football career.

2020: NFL Draft

In 2020, the Bengals made Burrow the top pick in the NFL draft.

2020: Won National Championship Game

In the 2020 National Championship Game against Clemson, Joe Burrow led LSU to a 42-25 victory, and he was named the game's offensive MVP.

2020: Finished Rookie Season

Joe Burrow finished his rookie season in 2020 with 2,688 passing yards, 13 touchdowns, and a 2-7-1 record. The Bengals finished the season with a 4-11 record, missing the playoffs.

2021: Divisional Round Game Against Tennessee

During the 2021 Divisional Round game against Tennessee, Burrow was noted to have successfully called his own plays.

2021: Tied Total Touchdowns Record

In 2019, Joe Burrow also set a FBS single-season record with 65 total touchdowns, which was later tied by Bailey Zappe in 2021.

2021: Breakout season and Comeback Player of the Year award

In 2021, Burrow led the Bengals to their first playoff win since 1990 and a Super Bowl LVI appearance. He was also awarded Comeback Player of the Year.

2021: Sports Illustrated Writer Profile

In 2021, Sports Illustrated writer Mike Santagata wrote that Burrow is "bigger than he looks at about 230 pounds," while also noting his athleticism and strength.

February 2022: Appeared On-Stage with Kid Cudi

In February 2022, Joe Burrow appeared on-stage with Kid Cudi during a Super Bowl afterparty.

June 2022: Spoke Out on Abortion Rights

In June 2022, Burrow spoke out on Instagram in favor of abortion rights in the United States following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

July 26, 2022: Emergency Appendectomy

On July 26, 2022, Joe Burrow underwent emergency surgery to remove his appendix due to severe appendicitis.

2022: NFL Playoffs

In 2022, Burrow led the Bengals to a narrow win over the Ravens in the Wild Card Round and a decisive victory over the Bills in the Divisional Round en route to their second consecutive AFC Championship appearance.

2022: Ranked 21st in NFL Top 100 Players of 2022

In 2022, Burrow was ranked 21st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2022.

January 2023: Purchased North Iowa Farm

In January 2023, Joe Burrow was among a coalition of about a dozen athletes who purchased a 104-acre north Iowa farm with plans to further acquire a diverse set of agricultural assets.

September 7, 2023: Signs Contract Extension

On September 7, 2023, Joe Burrow signed a five-year, $275 million contract extension, surpassing Justin Herbert to become the highest-paid player in NFL history on an annual basis, with an average annual salary of $55 million.

November 17, 2023: NFL Investigation into Injury Report Compliance

On November 17, 2023, the NFL launched an investigation into whether the Bengals were compliant with the injury report policy due to a deleted video on X of Burrow wearing a soft cast.

December 9, 2023: NFL Investigation Concludes

On December 9, 2023, the NFL concluded their investigation and found that the Bengals were compliant with the league's injury report policy.

2023: Signed Largest Contract and Led Division

In 2023, Burrow signed the largest contract in NFL history at the time regarding annual salary and led the Bengals to their first consecutive division title in franchise history.

2023: Ranked 6th in NFL Top 100 Players of 2023

In 2023, Burrow was ranked 6th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2023, his first ever appearance in the top ten on the list.

2023: Plays Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

In 2023, Joe Burrow stated that he usually plays "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate" on flights to road games with his teammates, and that he frequently plays as Ness from Earthbound.

2023: Supports Teammates from the Sidelines

Throughout the remainder of the 2023 season, Joe Burrow continued to be involved with team activities and supported his teammates, particularly backup quarterback Jake Browning, from the sidelines.

2024: Led the League in Passing Despite Missing Playoffs

Despite Cincinnati missing the playoffs in 2024, Burrow led the league in passing yards and passing touchdowns and was awarded his second Comeback Player of the Year Award.