Peyton Manning compares Bryce Young to Joe Burrow ahead of 2023 NFL Draft

Peyton Manning is a big fan of Bryce Young and actually compared him to Joe Burrow based on the quarterback’s similar traits.

Burrow, like Young, won a Heisman while in college. That led him to the No. 1 overall pick and instant success with the Cincinnati Bengals. Young is a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Manning broke down Young compared to Burrow on ESPN+’s On The Clock.

Peyton Manning sees a bit of @JoeyB in @AlabamaFTBL's @_bryce_young. pic.twitter.com/tzmUALfmhW

— Omaha Productions (@OmahaProd) April 11, 2023

“Talking to real scouts, Burrow is the guy that comes to mind,” Manning said while watching Young’s tape. “Because of the sixth sense in the pocket. The decision making, processing information quickly, and I’m not saying Bryce is going to have that same success as Joe right away, but I think the instincts that Joe has, that Bryce has. The ability to beat the coverage keeps a lot of plays alive. I love (this play) knowing he’s about to get hammered.

“Throws one right in there. Joe’s not afraid to hold that ball to the last minute until somebody comes open. Nice touch there. Yeah, I mean, recognition, processing instincts. You see a little bit of Joe Burrow in Bryce Young.” 

A Manning special wouldn’t be complete without Eli Manning, who agreed about Young and Burrow.

“I like that comparison, I wouldn’t have thought of that,” Eli said. 

“That’s why I’m here,” Peyton quipped.

Young had the highest score in the S2 cognitive test among all the quarterbacks at the 2023 NFL Combine. And unlike the Wunderlic, which seeks to assess baseline intelligence, the S2 test is designed to evaluate how well an individual can process and react to information.

“So it’s a processing test that is now being given to, especially, quarterbacks,” NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah said on Around The NFL. “It’s been big in baseball. So it’ll be like six shapes pop up and one is different, how different can you identify the one that is different? It’s how quick you can process information. If you think about for baseball, pitch recognition and all that stuff. It’s a very valuable tool. And it’s made its way over to football in the last five or six years.”

Young won the Heisman Trophy in 2021 during his first year as a starter and led Alabama to the College Football Playoff National Championship. Alabama missed out on the CFP last season, but ended with a Sugar Bowl victory.

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Young finished his college career with 8,356 yards, 80 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a 65.8% completion percentage.