Top picks Burrow, Stafford take different Super Bowl paths

• Published date: 09 February 2022
• Publication title: The China Post

Joe Burrow got to the Super Bowl faster than any other No. 1 pick quarterback. Matthew Stafford's journey from top pick to the title game has taken longer than any other quarterback.

A rare Super Bowl meeting between No. 1 pick quarterbacks provides quite a contrast for their paths.

Stafford and Burrow will be the 10th and 11 quarterbacks among the 26 taken with the top pick in the common draft era to start in the Super Bowl.

This marks just the second time in NFL history that No. 1 pick QBs squared off in the Super Bowl, with Peyton Manning and the Broncos beating Cam Newton and the Panthers six years ago.

Manning is one of just six former No. 1 pick quarterbacks to start and win a Super Bowl, having done it with his original team in Indianapolis and then again in Denver.

The only other ones to do it with the team that drafted them like Burrow is attempting to do are Troy Aikman and Terry Bradshaw. Eli Manning and John Elway won where they began their careers, but were acquired by the Giants and Broncos in trades after being picked by the Chargers and Colts.

The other No. 1 pick champion was Jim Plunkett, who won two titles for the Raiders after being drafted by New England.

Burrow has gotten to the Super Bowl faster than any other No. 1 overall pick, doing it in his second season. Jared Goff got there for the Rams in his third season, while Eli Manning, Drew Bledsoe, Troy Aikman and John Elway all got there in year four.

A win on Sunday would put Burrow in some special company, joining Tony Dorsett, Charles Woodson and Reggie Bush as the only players to win a Heisman Trophy and national championship in college, along with a Super Bowl in the pros.

Stafford had a much longer wait to get to this stage, taking until year 13 to get to the Super Bowl - longer than any other top pick who eventually made it that far. Stafford's 49,995 yards passing and 323 TD passes are the most for a QB making his first Super Bowl appearance.

If Stafford wins on Sunday, it would be the second-longest wait for a QB to win his first Super Bowl, trailing only Elway who won his first in his 15th season after losing three times.

Burrow and Stafford also got here after leading the NFL in sacks and interceptions, respectively. Burrow is the first QB to make it to the Super Bowl after getting sacked the most in the regular season.

Stafford, who tied for the most interceptions, is the third player to get that far after throwing the most INTs. Eli Manning was also tied for the most in 2007 on the...