Rex Ryan has extremely flattering comparison for Joe Burrow

Joe Burrow has made great strides in his second NFL season, and the Cincinnati Bengals are a legitimate playoff contender because of it. There are some people who believe the Bengals being 5-2 and atop the AFC is a fluke, but Rex Ryan certainly is not one of them.

Ryan said on ESPN’s “Get Up!” Monday morning that he has been blown away by Burrow’s development. The former coach enthusiastically compared Burrow to Tom Brady.

“I would absolutely love him if he was on my team. He reminds me so dang much of Tom Brady it’s sick,” Ryan said. “In every single way — the way he looks, the way he can throw the football, the way he conducts himself. Everything about him reminds me of Tom Brady.”

The Brady comparison is one of the most overused in sports, namely because there will never be another Brady. Ryan, who coached against Brady several times, knows that. What he was trying to express was how poised and polished Burrow looks for a quarterback who is only 24 and has played in just 17 NFL games.

Burrow threw for more than 400 yards and had three touchdowns in Sunday’s blowout road win over the Baltimore Ravens. He now has 1,956 yards and 17 touchdowns on the season. Keep in mind he is doing all this after suffering a devastating knee injury less than a year ago.

Burrow is not the only young quarterback who has been compared to Brady this season. We highly doubt he’ll win seven Super Bowls and play until he’s 44, but there’s no question the Bengals are finally back on the map because of him.