Burrow’s deserves praise for his performance this season, despite Cincinnati’s record.
Football is a team game played by individuals, which means that on occasion an individual can singlehandedly undo the work of an entire team. The kicker who misses a crucial game-winning field goal, the quarterback who throws a crushing pick-6, the defensive lineman who commits a back-breaking penalty … when one player’s failure is the pivot point on which a game is lost, it’s maddening, but at the same time every player realizes that he could be that player one day, too.
The exact opposite scenario is playing out in Cincinnati right now, a strange dynamic where the team is undoing the excellence of the individual.