The Cincinnati Bengals have spent the bulk of the offseason upgrading toward the idea of getting back into the playoffs and contending. But other accolades come with such a push, including major award chances for the likes of Joe Burrow. That’s a topic that made the rounds recently at ESPN, with Mina Kimes and Ben Solak attempting to predict next year’s award winners and providing some pretty interesting thoughts on Burrow in the process. Bengals fans will find themselves nodding along with the commentary, especially when Solak noted that the MVP award is all about narratives and Kimes highlighted some positives for the Bengals. “My feeling about Burrow was this—one, he’s never won it,” Kimes said. "…I just feel that, everything is in place. There’s no contract drama with the wide receivers.” Hard to argue with Kimes, who is right about the lack of contract drama (unless the stuff with DJ Turner suddenly turns into an issue) and the fact the Bengals actually have a really solid offensive line, even if most outside of the tri-state area don’t realize it yet. It all has to come together on the field for the Bengals to contend and Burrow to hunt for individual awards. But these sort of measured takes that are actually in tune with the happenings around the Bengals are pretty rare and, for fans, no doubt refreshing.
This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Joe Burrow’s MVP case gets a boost from major experts