The holidays were wild for everyone, including — perhaps most of all — the folks in the NFL. There were blowouts. There was fuel for the kaleidoscopic MVP picture. There was playoff drama and there was No. 1 overall pick drama. There was something good for everyone. Except the Cleveland Browns. There was, as usual, nothing good for them. I'm so very sorry. Maybe you guys can enjoy the ride for a guy like Sam Darnold, who was — for a time — the quarterbacking version of the Browns.
If he can turn things around, so can Cleveland. A small note: the injuries to Tua Tagovailoa and Jalen Hurts — combined with poor performances from the QBs in the low teens — created an elevation that might strike people as strange. Let's chalk that up to a lopsided week of football. Happy New Year from the QB Stock Market, where we weigh the most recent performances with 30% importance, while applying 70% to the rest of 2024. One question holds importance above all others: What have you done for your team lately? Previous weeks: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 1. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals (⬆️ 3) Can we talk about the guy who's actually most valuable? I'm not talking about the MVP award, which will of course go to Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson. That award is about narratives, wins and stats — in that order. I'm talking about the player most responsible for his team's success. Right now, that's Burrow. Burrow is playing quarterback better than anyone else in the NFL, in large part because he has no choice. He might not have as many wins as the other guys atop this list. But he's contributed more toward Cincinnati's pursuit of victories than any of the other guys atop this list for their respective teams. Burrow hasn't had his back against the wall all year — he's been up against the wood chipper. I blame Zac Taylor (and Bengals ownership) for yet another poor start in Cinc