Bear Digest

Former Bears QB offers explanation for controversial MVP vote

It's unlikely to satisfy his critics, but Bears broadcaster and former quarterback Jim Miller used his SiriusXM show to address why he voted Lamar Jackson fourth.
Gene Chamberlain|
Jim Miller fires downfield in a 2000 game against Philadelphia. Miller's vote for MVP has been ridiculed and his explanation for it rather vague.
Jim Miller fires downfield in a 2000 game against Philadelphia. Miller's vote for MVP has been ridiculed and his explanation for it rather vague. | Lou Capozzola-Imagn Images

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Jim Miller's explanation for tipping over the table probably won't satisfy many.

At least he offered one.

Miller, the former Bears QB who works their preseason telecasts and is on a weekly Bears.com podcast, had the NFL world aghast after his vote for MVP was revealed through social media. Ravens fans were outraged that he had Lamar Jackson fourth on a ballot that asked voters to name their top five for MVP. He was voted behind winner Josh Allen, and also Saquon Barkley and Joe Burrow.

Miller was the only voter to have Jackson outside the top two.

Miller does the SiriusXM "Movin' the Chains" podcast, as well, and offered up an explanation. In it, he did correctly comment that Allen would have won even if he had placed Jackson higher, so the uproar is actually pointless.

“A lot of people loved Lamar,” Miller said. “Certainly I voted a certain way. A lot of people didn’t like their take on that. And I had my five (ranked).”

The reason many will dislike his explanation is he took the time to talk about it but didn't even really explain the most controversial aspect of his vote.

His only other comment was about how he almost voted for Patrick Mahomes to win and Mahomes wasn't among the finalists.

“At the end of the day, this is a team sport, and he (Mahomes) has won more than anybody," Miller said. "He’s 15-2 on the year, and I had to refrain myself, but I would’ve slept very nicely with him being the MVP for my vote.

"So I sleep very good with how I voted. A lot of people didn’t like it because Lamar is quite a player.”

Much of the outrage has stemmed from the fact Jackson was actually the All-Pro QB voted on by AP but wasn't MVP.

This outrage is misguided since MVP and All-Pro are two separate votes and one has little to do with the other. The MVP is intended for the player who is most valuable, who elevates his team most to victory and not necessrily top statistical quarterback or player. That doesn't mean they can't be one in the same, but in this case they are.

Dan Orlovsky explained his vote for Allen on ESPN's "Get Up" and it adequately summarized it all. He admitted Jackson was "...the best player in football this year," but voted for Allen because the Bills lost key players in the offseason without adequately replacing them, had a weaker roster than Baltimore and Allen had lifted them to a better record.

Those who don't like this explanation only need to look at the playoff game between the teams. It wasn't part of the vote, which was done in the regular season, but Allen prevailed against a Ravens defense ranked 10th. Jackson and his team went through a turnover-plagued day and lost against the 17th-ranked Bills defense.

Of course, none of this explains how Miller could have voted Jackson behind Joe Burrow, but that didn't alter the overall vote.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.