Over the weekend, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens played against each other in a match that was to determine who would get to the top of the AFC North. The Bengals came into the game at 4-2 while the Ravens were 5-1. In the end, it was the Bengals who came out on top and flung their team into first place in the division. The Joe Burrow vs. Lamar Jackson QB battle was won by Burrow, although everyone knows just how great Jackson truly is.
After the game, there were various hot takes about these two quarterbacks, including from none other than Stephen A. Smith, who offered a very surprising opinion this morning. While speaking on First Take, Smith claimed that he would take Burrow over Jackson, if he had to choose between the two.
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Smith’s co-hosts were pretty surprised by this hot take, although Smith explained himself by saying that Jackson has yet to prove himself as a consistent thrower of the football. Smith values that aspect of a quarterback’s game the most, and at this moment, Smith feels like Burrow can do it a lot better. The First Take host acknowledged Jackson’s ability to run the ball, although Smith doesn’t see that as sustainable.
As you can imagine, NFL fans did not take too kindly to this take, and they let him know in the quote tweets. Jackson is beloved around the league, and he has a lot of people willing to defend him at any moment. Today ended up proving to be one of those times.
You can check out the reactions to Smith’s comments, below.