Conventional wisdom in the NFL is that if you have a franchise quarterback playing at an MVP level, you are probably going to have a real chance to win the Super Bowl.
The Cincinnati Bengals are throwing that conventional wisdom in the trash can this season.
With their 44-38 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, the Bengals fell to 4-8 and probably eliminated themselves from realistic playoff contention.
It is bitterly disappointing for two reasons.
The first is that the Bengals entered this season with Super Bowl expectations, thanks to the return of a healthy Joe Burrow for a full season.
The second is that Burrow has not only come back, he has played at an MVP level, and the Bengals have completely wasted it. Sunday’s game was no exception.
Burrow completed 28-of-38 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns while also helping the Bengals offense score 31 points (the other seven Bengals points came on a defensive touchdown). It still was not enough to win.
It is already the fourth time this season the Bengals scored at least 33 points in a game and lost. They have two additional games with at least 25 points and lost.
The rest of the NFL has just one loss season when scoring at least 33 points in a game (which, oddly enough, came against the Bengals).