Getty Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow against the Kansas City Chiefs on January 2, 2022.
As you start to win games consistently in the National Football League, the narrative surrounding your franchise begins to shift.
The Kansas City Chiefs used to be the young upstart underdogs but over the past couple of years they’ve turned into the team to beat, the next dynasty, the grim reapers. Their AFC championship opponent has taken over the role of the feel-good story.
Remember when that was Andy Reid winning his first Super Bowl? Or Patrick Mahomes’ MVP campaign in 2018?
Instead, it’s Iowa native Joe Burrow — who went to high school in Ohio — and the Cincinnati Bengals. The hometown kid that’s returned to bring Cincy their first-ever Lombardi trophy. Recently though, Burrow’s father joked that his son wasn’t always loyal to the Bengals.
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Jimmy Burrow Outs Joe as Ex-KC Fan
This morning on January 28, Jimmy Burrow tweeted out a childhood photograph of his wife and son.
Joe use to like those shiny red chiefs helmets . Not anymore . Geaux Bengals .
It revealed Joe Burrow rocking a Chiefs’ helmet as a young boy, with the caption: “Joe use to like those shiny red chiefs helmets . Not anymore . Geaux Bengals .”
The picture quickly went viral after Bleacher Report Gridiron picked it up, teasing: “Looks like baby Burrow had different interests as a kid.”
Former Chiefs fan or not, the stage wasn’t too big for Burrow when the two sides met in Week 17. The former No. 1 overall pick threw for 446 yards that day with four touchdowns and a 76.9 completion percentage. That amounted to a 148.0 passer rating according to Pro Football Reference.
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Funny Reactions From Fans
Fans ran with this information on Twitter and this photo brought another viral image to mind — Aaron Rodgers in San Francisco 49ers gear as a kid. The NFL supporter who posted it wrote: “That Burrow picture will never be as bad as this picture.”
@brgridiron @CoachBurrow That Burrow picture will never be as bad as this picture 🤢
Another noted the strangely similar traits between Burrow’s mother and Brittany Matthews, the long-time girlfriend and fiancée of Mahomes. “We gonna ignore the fact that Joe Burrow’s mom is Brittany Matthews?” The fan asked with an uncanny side-by-side comparison.
@CoachBurrow We gonna ignore the fact that Joe Burrow’s mom is Brittany Matthews?
One last passerby shared a second photo of Burrow in a “Chiefs Football” cut-off shirt — except this time, he’s a bit older. Another responded: “He grew up in Iowa… That’s Chiefs country.”
@ZeroUltraAutism @CoachBurrow He grew up in Iowa… That’s Chiefs country.
Media Backing Burrow?
Despite the KC roots as a child, Burrow has embraced everything Cincinnati upon his glorious return. The LSU superstar has had a chip on his shoulder ever since the draft after some saw him as a potential bust and he appears to have that same inner motivation that inspires every great athlete.
That fighting spirit has caught the attention of many observers in the fan/media realm and it feels like many outside of Chiefs Kingdom could be cheering for an upset on Sunday.
As we mentioned in the open, that’s what it means to become a consistent winner in this league. It’s never as fashionable to support the favorite in sports.
People would prefer to be shocked and nothing is more surprising than going from a last-place finish in your division to a Super Bowl in 12 short months.