Joe Burrow and LSU's Reinvented Offense

How did Joe Burrow, the starting quarterback for the LSU tigers, go from a “game manager” to looking like one of the best quarterbacks in the country? It took LSU changing their entire offensive scheme for Burrow to take a step towards elite status.

Offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger took control of the Tigers’ offense last season after Matt Canada’s failed spread offense experiment. LSU’s offense struggled in Ensminger’s first season as they ranked 68th nationally in yards per game. Head Coach Ed Orgeron added Joe Brady, a New Orleans Saints offensive assistant, to their coaching staff as passing game coordinator this season. Brady took the Tigers’ offense out from under center and implemented a new shotgun heavy system. Along with the new shotgun based system, Brady also introduced RPOs to the system. The introduction of RPOs to their offense could possibly make the LSU Tigers a legitimate national championship contender.

First let's look at the numbers. Joe Burrow threw for 2,894 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions last year in his first season as an LSU Tiger. This season Burrow has thrown for 749 yards, 9 touchdowns, and only 1 interception through 2 games. Burrow has thrown for about a fourth of his yards last year and is only 7 touchdowns away from tying his total passing touchdowns in 2018. Need I remind you that he has done this in just 2 games? It is insane how much his production has skyrocketed this season.

One of the most impressive things about Burrow’s performance so far this season is how confident he looks. Take a look at Burrow’s first touchdown against Georgia Southern.

Burrow has a tiny window that he has to fit the ball into, and he throws an absolute laser to get LSU on the board. It takes a lot of confidence to just be able to throw that pass.

Last weekend LSU took on Texas in a huge top 10 match-up, and Joe Burrow balled out to say the least. Burrow made a plethora of impressive throws, one in particular coming at the end of the first half.

This is one of the most impressive throws I saw from Burrow in the first two games. The score is 13-7 and LSU has a chance to go up 20-7 at the half against Texas. At this point Texas had already screwed up their clock management which allowed LSU to be able to score 10 points in the final minutes of the second quarter. On this play Jefferson runs a streak into the endzone and has one on one coverage. Since the defender’s head is turned, Burrow can complete this pass if he throws it high and outside. Burrow throws the perfect pass, Jefferson makes a great grab, and LSU goes up two possessions going into the half.

I want to see Burrow play against better defenses (Auburn/Alabama) before I call him an elite quarterback, but his progression as a passer is extremely impressive. If he does keep up this level of play, we can thank Joe Brady for unleashing this brand new confident, and fearless version of Joe Burrow.