When it comes to the elite quarterbacks currently in the NFL, many people would include Joe Burrow on that list. The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback put up wild numbers during his fifth year in the league and has risen to superstardom since the 2021 season.
Not everyone agrees that Burrow belongs on the elite list, however. First Take's Chris Canty is one of those people, dropping an absurd opinion about Burrow during a recent episode.
"[Burrow]'s not an elite quarterback," Canty said on First Take. "We've gotta get out of this thing where we wanna anoint everybody an elite quarterback... We can't give the runner-up to the runner-up to the runner-up elite quarterback status... When we start talking about the podium, it's a gold medal slot, it's a silver medal spot, and it's a bronze medal. All right, the fourth place guy don't get acknowledgement and that's where I'm at with the Joe Burrow of it all."
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Canty then discusses how Patrick Mahomes. Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen have all done more in the NFL than Burrow has.
"When it comes to being able to acknowledge the level of player that you are, we gotta couple of ways we measure that in the league," Canty said. "It's Super Bowl rings, it's MVPs, and it's All-Pros. Joe Burrow ain't got none of those."
Chris Canty fires off a massively hot take about Joe Burrow
Okay, let's break this down, shall we? Canty is accusing Burrow of not being elite because he doesn't have a Super Bowl ring. Meanwhile, he says Allen and Jackson are ahead of him on the elite podium but neither of those guys have a Super Bowl ring either. Canty also points out the lack of MVP hardware for Burrow but Allen has yet to win one of those either.
Canty finishes his spiel by saying that Burrow's only "claim to fame" is the AFC Championship win he had over the Chiefs in 2022. "Joe Burrow's claim to fame is, once upon a time, four years ago, beat Patrick Mahomes in a playoff game on his way to losing the Super Bowl. I'm sorry, that doesn't give you elite status."
It's true that Burrow and the Bengals haven't been back to a Super Bowl since losing Super Bowl LVI but he's the only one outside of Mahomes in Canty's elite trio that has at least been to one. Burrow also has done well during the playoffs, going 5-2 as a starter while Allen is 7-6 and Jackson is 3-5.
For what it's worth, Cam Newton blasted Canty for his ridiculous take, noting that Burrow is not the reason the Bengals didn't make it to the playoffs this year. Newton pointed the finger at the Cincinnati defense and said that Burrow did his job. Thankfully somebody on First Take knows what's up.