The Bengals might as well just hand over their draft card to Commissioner Goodell now.
It’s a virtual lock Cincinnati will select Joe Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick in late April’s NFL draft. The 2019 Heisman Trophy winner has been the consensus top pick for some time now, but he seemingly increased the likelihood Monday night when he put together a stellar five-touchdown performance in LSU’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game win over Clemson.
But if Nick Wright were calling the shots in Cincy, it’s safe to say he wouldn’t be itching at the opportunity to bring Burrow on as his new franchise quarterback.
Wright on Tuesday made a surprising NFL comparison for the Tigers quarterback and explained why he believes Burrow isn’t poised to become one of the game’s best signal-callers.
“To me, when I watch him, even if physically they don’t look alike, I think it’s kind of a rich man’s Andy Dalton,” Wright said on FS1’s “First Things First.” “Andy Dalton became a punch line, that’s not fair. Andy Dalton was solid at almost everything. I think Joe Burrow is good at almost everything. I don’t think he’s great at anything, at least what I’ve seen. Again, I hate knocking the guy. He’s going to be the No. 1 pick, he’s going to be very wealthy, he’s going to be very successful, so you’ll be able to deal with it. But when you look at the best quarterbacks in football right now, all of them are elite at at least one thing. Russell Wilson, it’s the intangibles and the escapability. Patrick Mahomes, it’s the arm talent and the arm angles. Aaron Rodgers, by the way, same type of thing. Go down the list. Deshaun Watson was not a one-year wonder. Deshaun Watson, every year he started at Clemson, he was tremendous.
“I watch Joe and I say, ‘I think he’ll be good.’ I think he’ll be good, and if I was drafting sixth like the Giants were with Daniel Jones, I’d be thrilled to take him. At No. 1, eh, I really wish Tua would have been healthy. If I’m the Cincinnati Bengals and Tua doesn’t break his hip, to me, it’s a very, very, easy, clear-cut decision. I’ll take Tua Tagovailoa, who I think is elite at a number of things.”
"When I watch Joe Burrow, he's kind of a rich man's Andy Dalton. Burrow is good at almost everything; I don't think he's great at anything. Wilson has the intangibles & escapability. Mahomes it's the arm talent & arm angles. Rodgers, same thing. Go down the list." —@getnickwright pic.twitter.com/BWGp1f1puH
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) January 14, 2020
History has shown Wright might not be wise to doubt Burrow. The 23-year-old not terribly long ago wasn’t viewed as good enough to start at Ohio State, only to go on to put together one of the most impressive seasons by a player at any position in college football. Burrow seems to have the exact kind of moxie you want in a starting signal-caller, and one has to imagine the Bengals will be beyond thrilled to welcome the Ohio native to the franchise.
We’re not saying Burrow is going to go on to become Tom Brady or Joe Montana, but the Dalton comp might be selling him a bit short.
