Mike Tomlin says what every Bengals fan wholeheartedly believes about Joe Burrow this season

It wouldn't be right for Joe Burrow to win his first NFL MVP award if the Cincinnati Bengals miss the playoffs with a losing record. The MVP is a regular season award and falling short during the 17-game slate will never get you the votes you need.

But if the 4-7 Bengals had record on the positive side of .500, Burrow's MVP case would be notably stronger. He's third in passing yards, tied for first in passing touchdowns, and has thrown just four interceptions.

Burrow's numbers and tape would demand him company with the Lamar Jacksons and Josh Allens of the MVP race, and the leader of his next opponent would agree. 

Mike Tomlin's effusive praise of Joe Burrow's 2024 season

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is in the midst of preparing his team to face Burrow and the Bengals for the first time this season. They have three AFC North games of tape and a league-leading 27 touchdowns to examine from before trying their own luck at containing him. 

A losing season is not doing much to deter Tomlin from saying what the Bengals and their fans already know.

"If you look at the tape, he's MVP-caliber in terms of what he's doing for them," Tomlin said of Burrow. "I started first with the two Baltimore games because of the intimacy of divisional play. Man, I don't know how many touchdowns he threw in those two football games. I know [Ja'Marr] Chase himself had five. It's just kind of reflective of what he and they are capable of."

Seven losses are just as bad on paper as they are in putting together the playoff picture, but Burrow's MVP sentiment transcends that. His performances have been great regardless of the final score. He's the only starting QB with a combined passer rating above 100 in both his collective wins and losses. 

Consistency is what Burrow has mastered this year, and if not for that, plenty of close losses for the Bengals would've been blowouts. The scouting report to eek out a win against him is as detailed as one could expect.

"You better do a good job of providing pre-snap looks. You better Blitz. Some, you better play covered. Some, you do a lot of things. And I think that is reflective of a quarterback in his position," Tomlin said. "I say the same thing when we play guys like Matt Stafford and so forth, guys that are anticipatory passes, guys that are complete command of their system of offense, guys that that know where all their eligibles are, and oftentimes that's illustrated by his ability to throw no-look, check downs, and things of that nature. He just knows where all his people are."

Though they've fallen short several times this year, Burrow and Co. have proven that the game can always come down to the last minute. It's how both of their most recent outings have gone, the most recent tape Tomlin got to observe.

"It's a 60 minute game. I think that's reflected in watching them play," Tomlin said. "I think oftentimes you see teams are capable of slowing him or slowing them down at the early portions of the game, but in the fourth quarter, he and they are coming on. I've been around long enough to have an appreciation for that. I know how and why that happens. You better carry enough defense. They get comfortable as the game goes on with what it is that you're doing, what it is they need to do to be successful."

The Bengals are 3-2 against the Steelers with Burrow at quarterback. He didn't get to play against them last year as both matchups came after his season-ending wrist injury, something Tomlin surely didn't mind.

He'll be out there this Sunday, not to make an MVP case in vain, but to simply keep Cincinnati's season alive. Tomlin and Pittsburgh won't be taking him lightly.