Joe Burrow receives the greatest compliment his childhood self would've ever wanted to hear
The reason why Joe Burrow picked the No. 9 jersey at LSU and carried that over to the Cincinnati Bengals was because of Drew Brees. The former New Orleans Saints quarterback heavily influenced the passer and leader Burrow has become in the NFL."I always watch Drew Brees. I think he's the best at what he […]
The reason why Joe Burrow picked the No. 9 jersey at LSU and carried that over to the Cincinnati Bengals was because of Drew Brees. The former New Orleans Saints quarterback heavily influenced the passer and leader Burrow has become in the NFL.
"I always watch Drew Brees. I think he's the best at what he does," Burrow said prior to be drafted at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine. "We had very similar offenses so I watched a lot of his film. That was my idol growing up."
Brees would have to agree with one of those points Burrow made several years ago.
While down in NOLA for the Super Bowl last month, Brees said that Burrow reminds him of himself when he was slinging the pigskin for the Saints.
"The first one that came to mind when you said it was Joe Burrow," Brees said. "Joe Burrow played at LSU right down the street. He played at the same time when I was playing for the Saints. Actually, the offense that he ran was the exact same offense that we ran. So, you know, watching him operate within our offense, it was like, I see him doing a lot of the things that I would do or that we do. And then just like the style of quarterback that he is, he's and excellent pocket passer."
I don't think there's a greater compliment Burrow could receive as a football player. His childhood idol proclaiming him to be the most similar quarterback to himself is complete affirmation of everything Burrow's worked to become.
Brees may not have won multiple Super Bowls or always put together with winning seasons in New Orleans, but he's one of the most productive and accurate QBs of all-time. Burrow is first all-time in completion percentage at 68.6% while Brees retired at the top spot with a career rate of 67.7%. Only Tom Brady has more career passing yards and touchdowns than Brees.
Brees did eventually win a ring for New Orleans. That's the goal for Burrow in Cincinnati.
Playing in similar offenses and emulating his film definitely paid off for Burrow, and the Bengals will continue to see the benefits of having this generation's version of Brees.