Former NFL Pro-Bowler who briefly played for Chiefs doubles down on terrible Joe Burrow take
Almost exactly a year ago, six-time NFL Pro-Bowler LeSean McCoy compared Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett to Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. "I said it before on I Am Athlete (podcast), [it's] Joe Burrow," said McCoy during an appearance on NFL Total Access ahead of the 2022 season. "I'm serious…it's identical. The reason why is […]
Almost exactly a year ago, six-time NFL Pro-Bowler LeSean McCoy compared Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett to Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
"I said it before on I Am Athlete (podcast), [it's] Joe Burrow," said McCoy during an appearance on NFL Total Access ahead of the 2022 season. "I'm serious…it's identical. The reason why is because first of all, they both were older quarterbacks. When I say older quarterbacks, coming into the draft, they stayed quite some time (in college). Joe kind of transferred a little bit from Ohio State and he came to LSU. His senior year he dominated. Same with Pickett. Pickett was a senior when he left. His last year he really dominated."
Pickett went on to have a fine rookie season — he essentially salvaged the season for Mike Tomlin and the Steelers — but he didn't convince anyone that he's the second coming of Burrow.
Except for McCoy.
McCoy, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers during his 12-year NFL career, suggested again this week that Pickett is on the same level as Burrow.
"Y'all remember a while ago, y'all laughed at me, I said Kenny Pickett reminds me of Joe Burrow, just more athletic," said McCoy during a segment on SPEAK. "Let him heat up…he reminds me of Joe so much. I'm telling you."
Again, Pickett looks like he's going to be a solid quarterback for the Steelers. Maybe he ends up being an all-time great in Pittsburgh. And maybe he delivers a Super Bowl win for the Steelers at some point.
But it's completely unfair to compare him to Burrow right now.
Burrow just has that "it factor" that very few quarterbacks possess. He came to a Bengals franchise that was the butt of jokes for decades and he immediately turned things around. Cincinnati went from a punchline to one of the hottest teams in the NFL almost overnight. That doesn't happen without Burrow.
We'll never know if Pickett could've made that same impact. It's not his fault, but he didn't get a chance to make that kind of impact on a franchise. Instead, Pickett landed with a team that hasn't had a losing season since George W Bush was the president and iPhones were still four years away from hitting the market.
I get that McCoy loves Pickett because they're both former Pittsburgh Panthers, but comparing him to Burrow isn't just nonsensical, it's completely unfair to Pickett, a player who is trying to just be Kenny Pickett instead of Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, or any other wildly successful NFL quarterback.
Featured image via The Cincinnati Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK
