Joe Burrow is the presumptive first overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, and he recently reached out to the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft.
Peyton Manning said on ESPN that Burrow called him and the two discussed what it takes to lead a franchise after going first overall.
“Joe called me last week,” Manning said. “We have somewhat of a relationship since he came down to our football camp last summer.”
Manning said he warned Burrow that it won’t be easy going to the Bengals, just as it wasn’t easy for him going to the Colts in 1998, because teams draft first overall for a reason.
“He asked me about some of he things that I tried to do when I was a rookie that maybe he can apply to his NFL career -- looks like it’s going to be with the Cincinnati Bengals,” Manning said. “I told him, Joe, when you’re the first pick in the NFL draft, you’re going to a team that has really earned the first pick in the NFL draft. There are going to be some holes there. There was a reason the Colts were picking No. 1 that year, there’s a reason the Bengals are picking No. 1 this year.”
Manning said he urged Burrow to think of his rookie year as a marathon, not a sprint, and not expect to sail through the season the way he did last year, leading LSU to a perfect record and national championship.
“I lost more games my rookie year than I had in my entire high school and college career combined,” Manning said.
Burrow may lose plenty of games as a rookie, but he is going to a good source to learn how to help a struggling franchise turn things around.