Colin Cowherd: Joe Burrow resembles Joe Montana, already better than Tony Romo

Bengals fans always knew the team was going places with Joe Burrow at the helm. Now, following a virtuoso performance in Cincinnati’s 24-21 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, the rest of the football world agrees.

Over the last two weeks, the second year quarterback has Pro Football Focus grades of 87.7 (against the Jags) and 90.3 (against the Pittsburgh Steelers).

Burrow’s dazzling performance in primetime—348 yards, a completion percentage of 78.1, and a QB rating of 132.8—caught the eye of a number of media personalities.

Brian Baldinger pointed out how Burrow brilliantly redirected tight end C.J. Uzomah on the game-tying touchdown:

Good ol’ Cris Collinsworth, the majority owner of PFF, shared Burrow’s averages and added that he makes the Bengals a playoff team.

ESPN’s Max Kellerman said that “Joe Burrow to me is that dude.” He then elaborated, saying that of all the post-Patrick Mahomes quarterbacks, Burrow is the most likely to win championships.

And then there’s Colin Cowherd, who went so far as to compare Burrow to Joe Montana and already place him ahead of Tony Romo.

Here’s what Cowherd said in transcript form:

I don’t want to be hyperbolic, but boy he’s got some Joe Montana. He’s just smooth and throws the ball so pretty and so accurate. He’s got such control. He can audible... Oh he’s so good. He’s so good. I mean, I thought he was going to be Tony Romo. He’s better. He may be a lot better.

Cowherd actually had a pretty interesting assessment of Burrow’s athletic traits and how they help make him the balanced player he is, saying:

I watched [the Thursday night game] and thought, ugh, God he’s good. What traits he has. You know, and it’s almost perfect. He’s got a good arm. But it’s not too good like [Brett] Favre [such that] he becomes reliant upon it and isn’t as coachable. He can move, but he’s not too fast like Michael Vick, who would admit he didn’t work hard on his game initially because he could always escape. He has just enough of an arm and just enough athletic ability.

Now, of course, both the Cowherd and ESPN segments featured criticism of the Bengals’ franchise and skepticism that someone like Burrow would reach his potential in Cincinnati. But the praise of Burrow is on point.

You can watch our recap of the game, including Burrow’s clutch performance, in the video below: