In every sport, elite pro prospects are compared to current starts. LeBron James was touted as the next Michael Jordan, and nearly two decades later, Zion Williamson was hyped as the next LeBron James.
In most cases, prospects never match or surpass the greatness of the stars they’re compared to prior to a draft. Baker Mayfield, for instance, was compared to Russell Wilson prior to the 2018 NFL Draft. Blake Bortles was compared to Ben Roethlisberger – and Big Ben himself said Bortles looked like a “young me.”
Projected No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow has been compared to New England Patriots legend Tom Brady by countless analysts – and he doesn’t want that pressure ahead of his rookie year. During an interview on the NFL Network, Burrow kindly requested that people stop comparing him to the GOAT.
“Please don’t compare me to the best player of all time, OK? Let me do my own thing. Don’t do that to me.”
It’s completely understandable that Burrow would be uncomfortable being compared to the future Hall of Famer, but at the same time, analysts aren’t predicting that Burrow will lead the Bengals to six Super Bowl titles – they’re simply pointing out that Burrow has similar mechanics and attributes. Even the most delusional Bengals fans aren’t expecting Brady-like results… I hope.
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