Sights, sounds from Super Bowl LVI Opening Night
Super Bowl week has started. Hours before local Opening Night ceremonies, the Cincinnati Bengals took questions from the media on Monday, offering their thoughts on the big game and much more.
Joey B. Joe Shiesty. Joe Brrr. Joey Franchise. Jackpot Joey. Joe Cool. Joe Chill. Smokin’ Joe. The Tiger King.
The meteoric rise of Joe Burrow has been met with a plethora of nicknames. Asked which is his favorite, the Bengals QB just laughed.
“Just call me Joe,” Burrow said Monday during Super Bowl LVI Opening Night. “Whatever anybody wants to call me is OK with me.”
.@JoeyB knows all the nicknames, but at the end of the day…
"Just call me Joe." 🤷♂️ #RuleItAll
💻: #SBOpeningNight live on NFL Twitter pic.twitter.com/OVYsCo8P79
The revelations didn’t end there. Rookie wideout Ja'Marr Chase said he practices the Griddy dance three times a week, while running back Joe Mixon said Chase does it better than anyone on the Bengals. When told kicker Evan McPherson would hit the Griddy if Cincy betas the Rams in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday, Chase replied: “I’m dead.”
It wasn’t all fun and games. Burrow, who wasn’t the biggest recruit coming out of high school and transferred from Ohio State to LSU after mostly sitting for three seasons in Columbus, offered sage advice for young players.
“Focus on getting better,” he said. “Don’t have a workout and then go and post it on Instagram the next day and then sit on your butt for four days, and everybody thinks you’re working hard but you’re really not. Work in silence. Don’t show everybody what you’re doing. Let your game on Friday nights and Saturday nights and Sunday nights show all the hard work you put in. Don’t worry about all that social media.”
"Work in silence. Don't show everybody what you're doing. Let your game… show for it."@JoeyB has some great advice for young players. 🗣️
💻: #SBOpeningNight live on NFL Twitter pic.twitter.com/MXhTsfkGHJ
That approach clearly worked for Chase, who is in the midst of a historic first season. His 1,455 receiving yards in the regular season were a rookie record in the Super Bowl era. He’s added 20 receptions for 279 yards and a touchdown in three playoff games, leading the Bengals in each category. It follows a notorious display in the preseason, which saw the LSU product struggle to create separation and catch passes. He’s done nothing but those two things for the past five months. It didn’t take long for Chase to change the narrative — he tallied 101 yards and a TD in Week 1 — and he said he didn’t spend much time thinking about it in the first place.
“I knew what I could do already,” Chase said. “Not much proving that I needed to do. I’m not really worried about too much. As long as I play my game, make sure no one is trying to take me out and distract me. That’s my main focus, make sure I’m doing my job.”
When it comes to kicking in the Super Bowl, no one has done a better job than Adam Vinatieri. Not only did he make two SB game-winners but he scored in six of them. McPherson has been doing a strong Vinatieri rendition this postseason, connecting on walk-off field goals in the past two rounds.
“I think that’s every kid’s dream — to kick the game-winning field goal in the Super Bowl,” the rookie said. “He’s done a lot for me, even not knowing me, for my career. Just to see somebody else make those kicks gives you the confidence to make them.”
"I think that's every kid's dream – to kick the game-winning field goal in the Super Bowl."@McPherson_Evan speaks to the influence Adam Vinatieri has had on his young career. #RuleItAll
💻:#SBOpeningNight live on NFL Twitter pic.twitter.com/aNqZT0DmcM
Tune into NFL Network at 8 p.m. E.T. for full coverage of Super Bowl Opening Night.
Source: Read Full Article