The preseason may not count in the standings, but that didn’t stop Joe Burrow from keeping it real at the postgame presser. As usual, the QB was at his best in the preseason opener. Young players like Tyler Steen, Jahan Dotson, Kelee Ringo, Adoree’ Jackson, and Sydney Brown were seen getting their reps in where they made their most. And despite the Bengals’ best shot, the Eagles secured the win. While Philly’s backup QB Tanner McKee stole the spotlight, Burrow was seen confessing his team’s flaws.

Following their 34-27 loss to the Eagles, the Bengals # 9 didn’t try to use his performance to cover up what he feels were the issues. Neither did he try to sugarcoat the team’s sluggish start. While speaking to reporters, Burrow expressed his frustration about the flaws. And even after his 9-10, 123-yard and 2 TD show, Burrow called the team’s performance “average,” at the presser. There were several stalled drives, turnovers, and more that allowed the Eagles to get the upper hand over the Bengals.

“We’ve got to be better. Too many procedural penalties. Too many errors. Things like that are going to happen, but I think it was much just wasn’t clean enough across the board,” he said, urging the team to be better.

Burrow didn’t hesitate to highlight the issues that cost the preseason opener to the Bengals, and he doesn’t wish these mistakes to be repeated. However, it can’t be denied that the QB was impressive in the game. Cincinnati’s defensive front had trouble slowing down the Eagles’ run game, and blown coverages in the secondary gave up big plays. On offense, costly penalties erased key gains, and a late-second-quarter fumble handed momentum squarely to the Eagles.

“We just can’t shoot ourselves in the foot like that. We did enough good things to win the game, but you can’t turn the ball over, you can’t have penalties in critical situations, and you can’t miss tackles. That’s how you lose games in this league,” Burrow said. The QB isn’t the only one. While the head coach Zac Taylor praised Burrow, he also explained that the rest of the team needs to get better. While Burrow and the Bengals are focused on what went wrong for Cincinnati, the spotlight is currently on the Philadelphia star Tanner McKee.

QB Tanner McKee had the best game in the Eagles’ preseason debut vs. Bengals

The star of the show, McKee, made a compelling case for QB2 duties at the Eagles’ preseason opener. With Jalen Hurts on the sidelines for this game, McKee got the nod and delivered in a big way for the Bengals’ defense during his time on the field. The third-year quarterback made the most of his opportunity, going an impressive 20-for-25 for 252 yards and two touchdowns.

He led the team to 27 points over their first six offensive drives. His abilities showed clear improvement from his rookie year. McKee was drafted by the Eagles in the sixth round of the 2023 Draft. With Kenny Pickett dealt to the Browns earlier this offseason, McKee now holds pole position in the race for the No. 2 job. And his standout performance makes a strong case for him.

“It felt good, felt like we were moving the ball, which is always fun. Obviously, we’ll watch film, and you never really know until you watch film. There are things that like, ‘Oh man, I missed that’ or whatever. But overall, moved the ball well, had a lot of guys that made great plays. So the feeling is good,” McKee said

While McKee may not be pushing Hurts anytime soon, he took a major step toward locking in his position for the team.