The Cincinnati Bengals haven't lived up to their expectations so far this season, but they still have a chance to get hot and make the playoffs. The primary burden of that falls on star quarterback Joe Burrow, who has played some of the best football of his career this season.

Speaking with reporters before the Bengals and Steelers meet for the first time this season, Tomlin described Burrow’s season as “MVP-caliber,” according to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor.

If you just looked at the stats this season, you wouldn’t be able to tell Joe Burrow is roughly a year removed from having surgery on his wrist. He’s thrown for 27 touchdowns and four interceptions. The box score would also have you clueless about what’s going wrong for the Cincinnati Bengals, too.

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow addresses the media ahead of his team's Week 13 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Paycor Stadium on CBS (Local12/WKRC-TV).

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin seems to be specifically focused on his team competing against Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who in Tomlin's mind is having an "MVP-caliber" season even if the team is only 4–7. Tomlin paid Burrow this high compliment when discussing this weekend's matchup.

Lost amid the Bengals' struggles in 2024 is Joe Burrow's stellar season. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin agrees after studying Burrow ahead of their Week 13 meeting.

"If you look at the tape, he's MVP-caliber in terms of what he's doing for them," Tomlin said of Burrow, who currently leads the NFL with 27 touchdown passes. Tomlin was specifica

Despite the Cincinnati Bengals 4-7 record, quarterback Joe Burrow has been on a tear this season. He has completed 67.2% of his passes for 3,028 yards with 27 touchdowns, four interceptions, and a quarterback rating 106.