The world of sports documentaries has exploded since the successes of The Last Dance and Formula One’s Drive To Survive. Netflix has now gone behind the scenes with many sports, including golf, basketball, and tennis. But arguably the biggest draw is their joint venture with the NFL: the Quarterback series.
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The series goes behind the scenes for a full season with three QBs in different situations. In its first season, it followed Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins, and Marcus Mariota. The series was so successful that it spawned a spinoff (Receiver, the same, but about wideouts) and a second season. That second installment was released this week, and follows Cousins again, as well as Joe Burrow and Jared Goff.
As the best of the trio, many have focused on Burrow’s storylines in the show. In one instance, Netflix showed the respect he gets from opposing coaches. After a tough 26-25 loss to the defending-champion Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2, a dejected Burrow was approached by Chiefs’ legendary defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who gave him some words of encouragement.
Spagnuolo: Hey, other than that guy [Patrick Mahomes], you are the best in the business. I’m not saying that because you’re standing here.
Burrow: Thank you.
Spagnuolo: Listen, I appreciate you, good luck!
#Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo to #Bengals QB Joe Burrow after last season's game:
"Other than our guy (Patrick Mahomes) you are the best in the business."
(📺 'Quarterback' on Netflix)
pic.twitter.com/gM7Cx7JdkY https://t.co/JuZ7czMIDa
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) July 8, 2025
An innocuous interaction between a player and an opposing coach, if we’ve ever seen one. Telling Burrow he’s the best in the business except for your own quarterback is about as good a compliment as you can get. Or maybe not.
Because it’s mid-July and Fox Sports 1 and the rest of them need to find something to talk about. FS1 pundit Keyshawn Johnson decided to take exception with one of the most inoffensive on-field post-game exchanges.
“I’m not so sure, that being called second-best, is actually a compliment. Because I don’t want somebody coming up to me and saying, ‘Oh you’re the second-best wide receiver behind T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the National Football League.'”
However, his two co-hosts, Paul Pierce and T.J. Houshmandzadeh, didn’t hesitate to counter his argument. As Pierce pointed out, if Spagnuolo called Burrow the best in the business and Mahomes heard that, it would not have been great for team unity. “But you don’t need to even say that,” Johnson responded.
However, it’s interesting to note that Johnson clearly didn’t do enough research before offering his take. Spagnuolo has complimented Burrow on many occasions. Back in 2021, he compared Burrow to Tom Brady ahead of a matchup with the QB.
“This may sound crazy, but I see a young Tom Brady. This guy does everything. He does not look like a second-year quarterback that missed a lot of his first year, totally impressed with him.”
He also praised Burrow publicly in 2023, saying that he had immense respect for him and again comparing him to Brady before fawning over his talent and killer instinct. Sounds like somebody is a big fan of Burrow’s game.
