NFL Scout Crowns Joe Burrow as Best QB, 'Nobody is Playing it Better Than Him'

One scout from an AFC team believes Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is setting the bar for his peers.

"If we're talking about playing the quarterback position, nobody is playing it better than him," the scout told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. "Footwork, ball placement, the mental game at the line of scrimmage, feel for the pocket, eye level, finding creases to step up and throw — he's the best right now. And he's more mobile than he gets credit for."

Burrow dropped one place in Fowler's annual QB rankings. He sits third behind the Kansas City Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes and Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen.

The numbers speak for themselves when it comes to how the two-time Pro Bowler performed in 2024. He was the NFL leader in passing yards (4,918) and touchdown passes (43), and he set career highs in passer rating (108.5) and QBR (74.7), per Pro Football Reference.

Burrow's stock suffered from circumstances beyond his control, many of the same factors that led to the Bengals going 9-8 and missing the playoffs.

"I get the guy has two elite wideouts, but their run game was average and the offensive line was not very good either," an AFC executive told Fowler. "On top of all that, their defense was porous and he kept them in every single game for the most part. I thought it may have been his best year, but it didn't get the same pub because of the other high-profile teams."

Mahomes remains an on-field cheat code, elevating a Chiefs roster with some glaring flaws to a third straight Super Bowl appearance. Allen was the MVP and guided the Bills to 13 wins in what many thought would be a transitional year after the Stefon Diggs trade.

Having both ahead of Burrow on the QB hierarchy is an understandable call.

Should he combine team success with another outstanding individual campaign, the Cincinnati signal-caller could challenge Mahomes for the top spot on Fowler's list next spring.