Pro Football Hall Of Famer Makes Questionable Case Why Joe Burrow's Not An Elite Quarterback

CINCINNATI — Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith made a head-scratching case for Patrick Mahomes as the only "elite" quarterback who missed out on the Super Bowl this past season.

Many consider the Bengals' Joe Burrow, Ravens' Lamar Jackson, and Bills' Josh Allen as part of that top-tier group, but Smith doesn't think those players have done enough to lift their team up to championship status like Mahomes.

He is the only one of the four to win a Super Bowl, and Burrow is the only other one to make an appearance in the big game.

"Josh Allen had a chance to get to the Super Bowl, you saw how he played," Smith said on This Is Football! With Kevin Clark. "Elite quarterbacks rise up in extreme circumstances and lead their squad. He puts them on his back, and he carries them to where they need to go. Elite quarterbacks show up when others are not showing up. Elite players show up when others don't show up. Elite players define the game. The game doesn't define who they are. And so when I look at Patrick Mahomes, I see an elite quarterback who learned how to overcome extreme circumstances. These others are learning how to become an elite quarterback."

It would make some sense if the former Cowboys legendary running back hadn't included Super-Bowl-less Dan Marino in his elite category. Marino played in one Super Bowl, just like Burrow, and never took home a title.

"That's all that they had," Smith said about Marino's Dolphins teams. "And sadly to say, and I blame this on Mr. (Don) Shula, he didn't do enough to help Dan Marino be better than just relying on his arm the whole time. John Elway did not become elite until they brought (Mike) Shanahan in and had Terrell Davis back there running. That's when he became truly elite."

Smith went on to name all the offensive weapons Burrow's been able to utilize in his career as a crutch, while completely ignoring the other two parts of the sport: Defense and special teams.

It's another mind-numbing example of how the goalposts keep getting moved for Burrow in these discussions. 22 players are on the field every play of the game; it's nearly impossible to overcome a bad defense and special teams and win a Super Bowl.

Burrow's worked with arguably the worst defense in the NFL over the past three years of missing the playoffs (29th in EPA/play allowed since the 2023 season opener, 31st in success rate allowed). He can't be on the field every play of the game.

When on the field, Burrow's posted a whopping four of six seasons with a 90-plus Pro Football Focus grade (93.9 in 2025, second-best behind Matthew Stafford).

Check out Smith's elite quarterback case below:

I talked to Emmitt Smith on This Is Football and he had a scorcher.

I brought up "elite quarterbacks"--Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow.

He said ONLY Mahomes of those is elite. Not Allen, Lamar or Burrow.

"Hell no they are not elite." He explains: pic.twitter.com/Y2d772IzDV
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) February 6, 2026

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