Part of the fun of having a superstar quarterback like Joe Burrow is wondering where he might even eventually rank among the NFL legends like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, or Drew Brees.

The comparison came up on a recent episode of First Word with James Rapien. While discussing Burrow's efforts to build relationships with teammates off the field, Rapien shared his thoughts on the challenges the Bengals quarterback faces.

"But when I think of Tom Brady, when I think of Peyton Manning, I didn't worry about this department. And that's the realm he's in. He's in that realm," Rapien said on June 11.

Rapien wasn't comparing Burrow's resume to those Hall of Famers. Instead, he was talking about the expectations that come with being one of the league's premier quarterbacks and the importance of being an approachable leader.

"Like Joe needs to be thought of in that light 20 years from now. It's like, 'Oh, Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, and then they passed the baton to Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes.' That's where he needs to get to. And if he's going to get there, he needs to be able to be a leader," Rapien said on June 11.

According to Cincy Jungle, one factor that has consistently followed Burrow throughout his career is health. The Bengals quarterback has missed parts of multiple seasons because of injuries, which remains one of the biggest questions surrounding his long-term trajectory.

That's one area where the comparison to Manning doesn't hold up. For most of his career, Manning was known for his durability and rarely missed significant time until later in his playing days.

Still, being mentioned alongside names like Brady and Manning is a reminder of the expectations surrounding Burrow as he enters another season leading the Bengals.

Could Joe Burrow's Contract Restructure Impact a Bengals Veteran's Future?

According to AtoZ Sports, Joe Burrow's recent contract restructure was designed to create salary cap space for the Cincinnati Bengals. It may have also helped settle one lingering roster question ahead of the 2026 season.

At first, releasing defensive tackle T.J. Slaton Jr. seemed to be the obvious move for creating additional cap room. According to Bengals reporter John Sheeran, releasing Slaton would have saved the team more than $6 million against the cap.

"Just putting one foot after the other, it is what it is," Slaton said to WLWT on 26 May. "It is a business at the end of the day, and you have to control the things that you can control."

However, instead of making a roster move, the Bengals created roughly $10 million in cap space by restructuring Burrow's contract.

That gave Cincinnati significantly more flexibility heading into training camp without having to part ways with veteran players.

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Written by

Debanjali Rakshit

Edited by

Arundhoti Palit