Why Joe Burrow should win the MVP

Burrow and the Bengals were largely unnoticed throughout the 2021 season, but they did make it to Super Bowl LVI, where they faced the Los Angeles Rams. Although they didn’t win the game, it was obvious that the Bengals would be on everyone’s radar for the 2022 season. And that is what has been the case.

Burrow was awarded the NFL’s Comeback Player Of The Year award in 2021 because of his strong play (366/520 and 4611 YDS), but he didn’t make it to the Pro Bowl. This season, Burrow was selected for the Pro Bowl and continued to lead the most dynamic offense in the league.

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Despite a slow start, Burrow proved he is a great quarterback and not a fluke. That slow start can be attributed to missing training camp and the pre-season because of getting his appendix removed before the season. Burrow started off the season slowly at 4-4. The Bengals looked to be in trouble after a bad loss to the Cleveland Browns on Halloween.

Burrow’s numbers only improve with an offense that focuses on the passing game. Although his per-game averages aren’t as high this season as last year, it is due to the team’s slow 4-4 start. Burrow took a while to get the Bengals offense moving with a new offensive line and a challenging slate of opponents.

Burrow led the Bengals to an eight-game win streak that brought them back to the top of the AFC North. It’s hard to find another quarterback that has been as good as Burrow during this stretch. That win streak is now at ten straight as Burrow leads the Bengals to their second straight AFC Championship game.

Burrow is at the top of his game while leading the Bengals in huge victories over playoff-caliber teams at the time, like the Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Winning big games is part of the MVP award, and Burrow has shown a knack for winning them throughout his career, including this season.

Joe Burrow cam to a situation in Cincinnati that was historically bad, and in the two years he has completed the season, the Bengals have been a dominant team, all of this is because Joe burrow came to town. Burrow has changed the entire culture, bit just of a franchise, but he has changed the culture of an entire city. That has not been done since the late 90s when Peyton Manning changed the culture of Indianapolis.

Joe Burrow speaks after Bengals win against Bills

Patrick Mahomes is a great quarterback and Jalen Hurts has had an outstanding season, but Joe Burrow is different, he sees things other quarterbacks do not see, and he makes plays other quarterbacks can’t even see. Sure Mahomes and Hurts do spectacular things that most can’t. Burrow is a cerebral killer who, while being a great athlete, is even more dangerous because he can out-think you.

Mahomes and Hurts have two of the best offensive lines in football, Burrow took a team to the Super Bowl last year with maybe the worst offensive line to ever play in a Super Bowl. This year the line has been better, but three injuries at the end of the season left Burrow playing behind three backups and he is still getting it done.

Burrow is cocky without it getting on your nerves, he knows how good he is and that feeds into the rest of the team who have developed his persona. This Bengals team is the perfect example of a great player making everybody greater around him. Nothing is more valuable in a quarterback than the ability to make others better around you. You don’t see Bengals players getting mad as Stefon Diggs did on Sunday, the Bengals players do their jobs and leave it at that.

Joe Burrow may not be the flashiest quarterback, but he is the best. Burrow is at his best in the toughest of games and he is like a trained assassin that does his job with little emotion. He probably won’t win the MVP and that’s ok, because, in the end, the MVP is a popularity contest. So give it to Mahomes and Hurts, but my bet is when the smoke clears it will be Joey B. standing on the podium holding the Lombardi trophy and I bet he will be ok with that.

Michael Irvin goes crazy Joe Burrow leads Bengals past Bills 27-10, advance to AFC Champ