Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. The Cincinnati Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK

NFL futures: Joe Burrow is a bet to back for most passing yards this season

By Griffin Carroll | Last updated 8/29/23

Yesterday we highlighted Trevor Lawrence as a QB worth backing in the "Most Passing Yards" market, and we stay in the AFC to diversify our futures investment with Joe Burrow. Burrow has established himself as one of the elite quarterback talents in the NFL, and 2023 should bring about further growth from the Bengals star.

The basis for my love of Lawrence on Monday was his schedule. I recently took it upon myself to rank some of the weakest secondaries heading into the new season, and I've been looking for which passers have the pleasure of seeing these teams this year.

In comes Burrow and the Bengals.

Joe Burrow: +900 to lead NFL in passing yards (DraftKings)

Cincinnati will see six of the 10 bottom secondaries I've identified, along with some games against other questionable secondaries like Arizona, Seattle and Pittsburgh (x2). This also doesn't take into account some likely pass-heavy shootouts against Buffalo and Kansas City that should help power some big passing outings.

Schedule be damned, Burrow has already flirted with the league lead in passing yards in each of the past two seasons. He was sixth in the league in 2021 and fifth in 2022, and in both instances, he missed a 17th game.

He's averaging over 4,500 yards per season in the past two years, and a slight bump in those numbers could be enough to top the league.

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We all know how loaded the Bengals are, but sure, I'll go ahead and mention it again. Few teams can match the firepower that this wide receiver room has in the trio of Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Cincy attempted the sixth-most passes per game last year, so the volume is very clearly there for Burrow.

At +900, this is a nice future to have in your pocket as Burrow and Co. look to make another run toward a Super Bowl.

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