The first two picks in the 2020 NFL Draft went head-to-head on Sunday, and it was Chase Young who got the best of Joe Burrow in the early going.
With the Cincinnati Bengals facing 4th-and-goal from the 3-yard line, Burrow tried to scramble for the end zone and was absolute throttled by Young as he reached for the goal line. The hit caused Burrow to cough up the ball.
Chase Young LIT UP Joe Burrow
(via @WashingtonNFL) pic.twitter.com/N1KwWxzOXB
— Overtime (@overtime) November 22, 2020
Here’s another angle of the hit:
Crazy play here. Chase Young makes incredible play to chase down Burrow and force a fumble. Washington recovers, then fumbles again before recovering again in the end zone. Was ruled a safety after the 2nd recovery, but holding brings it all back. pic.twitter.com/MV2FFO0yOm
— Mark Bullock (@MarkBullockNFL) November 22, 2020
The result of the play took a while to sort out. It was initially ruled on the field that Washington recovered the fumble and fumbled back into the end zone before recovering again, which resulted in a safety. The Bengals committed a hold on the play, so Washington accepted the penalty and 3rd down was supposed to be replayed. A review then determined that Washington never actually established possession of the loose ball until they recovered it in the end zone, so the result of the play was a touchdown. The holding penalty was declined at that point.
Burrow has drawn a lot of praise this season, and deservedly so. Young gets far less attention as a defensive player, but he certainly showed why he was the No. 2 overall pick on that hit.
