(Orchard Park) If he hadn’t been traded to the Buffalo Bills two months ago, running back Nyheim Hines knows exactly how he would have spent Monday night.
Hines would have kept his eyes glued to his television, watching the first, quite possibly, many other matchups between two of the most promising young quarterbacks in the National Football League in the Bills’ Josh Allen and Joe Burrow. of the Cincinnati Bengals.
” Absolutely ! “Hines launched. “Allen versus Burrow, two great quarterbacks, in the top 5 in my league, and I might even say higher for either of these guys. There is no doubt that it is something that everyone will watch and which, for a football fan like me, is exciting to see. »
PHOTO CHARLES KRUPA, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) on December 24
Not only will Hines be a privileged witness to a duel that will have important repercussions on the final classification in the American Conference, he also has interesting perspectives on each of the two players.
“Probably what he was in high school is probably what he is now, which is very calm,” Hines described of Burrow, with whom he played during of a high school all-star game in January 2015 in California.
“He was kind of like my head coach, Frank Reich,” he added, referring to his former coach at Indianapolis, who was fired after the trade that sent Hines to Buffalo.
“Very stoic. In cold blood. He never panics. I see Joe the same way. »
Hines’ respect for Allen has grown tremendously since he joined the Bills. In Allen, he first sees a player who will take all necessary means to get the desired result.
“And one thing people don’t realize about him is his intelligence. […] I knew his skill in making games, but this skill in making games relegates his intelligence to the background. »
So far this season, Allen has led the Bills (12-3) to first place in the AFC overall standings. The team is already assured of a third straight AFC East Division championship, its longest streak of such success since winning four in a row between 1988 and 1991.
Entering Week 17 of the schedule, Allen, in his fifth season in the league, ranked fourth in the league in passing yards with 4,029 yards and third in number of touchdown passes, with 32.
For his part, Burrow helped the Bengals (11-4) close to a second straight AFC North Division championship, a feat they haven’t achieved since their titles of the Central Section of the American Association in 1981 and 1982.
Burrow, who is on track to complete his third NFL campaign, ranked second in the league in passing yards (4,260) and touchdowns (34) before the start of the 17th season.e calendar week.
Together, since the start of the 2021 season, Allen and Burrow were tied for second in the league with 68 touchdown passes, behind Patrick Mahomes (74) of the Kansas City Chiefs entering weekend games.