Joe Burrow full sends it deep to his new explosive receiver during latest Bengals practice

On a play action rollout from shotgun, Burrow put plenty of air under the pass to Jackson, but it ended up a bit behind him down the field.

That wasn't the case with the next deep shot.

Burrow took another play action drop back and fired a perfect strike to Jermaine Burton, the team's third-round pick from this year's NFL Draft.

Burton is a guy Burrow will need to get plenty of reps with this offseason. The Bengals drafted him with the 80th overall pick to replace Tyler Boyd's spot in the starting lineup.

That will naturally include plenty of work from the slot, but Burton's vertical ability will be highly counted on to open up the Bengals' offense as he pairs with Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. 

"He'll fit great (with Chase and Higgins)," offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said of Burton. "He's explosive. Our job now is how do we mix and match those skill sets, but what he brings to the table with regard to the threat he's going to pose to the defense and how they're going to have to respect all three of those players and the explosiveness they bring – we'll figure that part out.

"But he'll take care of the hard part which is separating from defenders and catching the football."

His speed doesn't lie. Burton was one of the more explosive playmakers in all of college football in 2023. He averaged over 20 yards per reception and average depth of target for Alabama last season, and would've put up larger volume numbers if his quarterback was able to get him the ball more often. 

With Burrow being his quarterback now, that shouldn't be a problem.

Burrow still has to be cleared for full contact before he's fully ready for in-game action, but both his arm and wrist look great as of now.