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![Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) throws during organized team activities practice, Tuesday, June 14, 2022, at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati.](https://cdn.cincylink.com/pub/content/uploads/sites/27/2022/06/Joe-Burrow-talks-to-Chris-Simms-about-leadership-confidence-training.jpg)
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow's confidence and work ethic allowed him to bounce back from a season-ending knee injury to lead his team from a 4-11-1 record in 2020 to a Super Bowl 56 appearance.
So it's easy to forget that he sat the bench for three seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes before transferring to LSU, winning the Heisman Trophy and leading the Tigers to a national title ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft, when the Bengals made him the top overall pick.
On "Chris Simms Unbuttoned," Burrow discussed a number of topics with the NBC Sports NFL analyst and former quarterback, including his self-confidence, throwing motion, leadership qualities, grip of the ball, accuracy, arm strength and much more.
Here are 10 of the most interesting things Burrow had to say during the interview ...
On ball grip, rain and elements:
"I thought about changing (my grip of the ball) when I got to the league. And I tried to, I just couldn't quite spin it the way I wanted to. So I just went back to it. But I figured out a way when it gets cold and dry to hold it well. I tried to go pinky on the lace, for when it's windy and it's dry, so you can just get a little better grip. But it didn't feel right. ... I have a little secret for the rain that I think I have figured out and I don't know if anybody else does. So I'm gonna keep that one to myself. But maybe I'll tell you afterwards. You've definitely got to think about it - if it's windy, if it's dry - you're going to hold the ball differently and throw it differently depending on the elements outside. You definitely grip it a little less when it's wet."
On size:
"People are always very surprised when they see me how tall I am. 6-4. ,,, I'm not that big - 210 (pounds), 211, 212, somewhere around there. (My weight loss) kind of just happened naturally. With the rehab after the surgery after my rookie year, I'd lost a ton of weight. So I had to put that back on. I just wasn't able to put on all of the weight that I wanted to. And then I was like, 'Well, I'm playing better than I ever have, and I'm lighter.' So I'm just gonna keep this going. Yeah, and I'm feeling great, healthy. The only reason I would need to be heavier is to take all these hits. But I'm taking the hits just fine where I'm at."
On 50/50 weight distribution:
"I used to be more so on my back (foot). And I felt like I couldn't get my front foot down to where I really wanted to. And so I shifted it 50/50, so I can get that front foot down faster and get my back hip through faster. And it just makes everything faster and more compact and more powerful. And also, after my knee injury, putting a little more weight on that front foot makes it a little more stable. And I'm not just kind of sticking it out there and waiting to get hit. So it's all coming together. ... I always start the warm-up with the optimal throwing position. So just trying to close my shoulder off to my target. 50/50. Little knee bend. Straight up. Athletic back. And get all that ready to go."
On influences:
"Drew Brees was my favorite quarterback growing up. I was more of a college fan than an NFL fan. All my family played at Nebraska, so I loved watching the Cornhuskers. Taylor Martinez - loved him. Thought I was gonna be a basketball guy. So obviously LeBron James coming from Ohio. Played his high school when I was in high school in basketball twice. We lost both times but I put up some good numbers. I liked football - I liked college football. But I was more of a basketball guy. ... (I listened to) Kid Cudi, growing up. That was my guy. We hung out after the Super Bowl - we're good friends now. So that's been awesome. Tame Impala - been listening to a ton of Tame. It's very good. Future, Gunna, Young Thug. I'm a hip-hop guy for sure."
On arm strength:
"It was really some of the elements in the AFC North, realizing because I grew up in Ohio, played high school football in Ohio. But then I played my college ball in Baton Rouge, where the weather's always great. And then you come up here and it's windy. And it could be cold. And I couldn't cut the ball through the wind the way I really wanted to. And then I had the knee injury and I thought it was a great opportunity to kind of start from the ground up with my throwing motion. Because at some point I'm gonna just have to just sit here and throw because I'm not going to be able to move around. And so that was the beginning of the entire process - just being more connected with my body and my legs. When I was just standing and throwing coming off that surgery and trying to figure out ways to get a little more power and torque. ... And then it just continued to grow and then doing the rehab ... my hips were stronger than they had ever been just because of all the rehab I was doing for my knee. And it translated to more power on the football. ... So Jordan Palmer helps me a lot, out in Cali. So I try to go there for a week every year - get a little tuneup before camp. Try to get one after the season. And then a lot of it's on my own. I take stuff from him and apply it to my game. And then I'll find some stuff that I think I can apply to myself. And just tweak little things here and there every year. ... I'm lighter than I've every been but I'm throwing it as hard as I've ever thrown it before."
On time off after the Super Bowl:
"I didn't throw at all until OTAs. Because I dislocated my finger against the Chargers - I think that was Week 14 or 15. And that was kind of bothering me throughout the whole rest of the year. So I needed to let that rest. ... So I took a lot of time off. Didn't start throwing it until we started OTAs."
On accuracy - in football and basketball, but not golf:
"That's just always something that I've been good at. That's something that I never really had to think about. I never had the strongest arm or was the fastest, but I could always put it where I wanted it. ... I could hoop a little bit. I could hoop a little bit. No, I stink (at golf). Terrible. No (I don't play much). Because I know if I play and I stink, I'm gonna get obsessed with it. And then I'm gonna put way too much time in it, and neglect the things that I need to put time in. So I just don't really mess with it."
On diet and weight training:
"I don't really eat dairy. I don't eat a ton of red meat. And I think it's just different for everybody. I tried a lot of different things - cutting out certain things, adding things back in to see what makes me feel the best. And so I've got it pretty dialed to what makes my body and keeps the inflammation out. And keeps the swelling out if I do get an injury to allow me to feel as good as I can the next week. ... I still lift heavy. That's something that I enjoy. ... That's something I've always done. It kind of relaxes me and makes me feel good. And so I keep that. But when you do that, you've got to maintain your mobility ... and making sure that the joints are staying flexible. ... I'd love to be bulky if I still have all the mobility that I need. ... You want to be mobile in your shoulders. ... Trunk mobility is definitely - you need it, but you don't want too much of it at the same time."
On being a leader:
"I just always try to be myself. ... When you're playing football, you're talking to a lot of different kinds of people. What I realized pretty early is if you're just yourself, you know, people are going to want to be around you. Everyone's been around those guys that try too hard to lead, and it comes off corny. And they say something and you're like, 'Oh, OK, so he's saying something again.' I try to keep those moments and don't say anything unless I actually have something to say. So it's powerful when I do say it. I'm not just out there, 'Oh, I'm the quarterback. I've gotta say something in front of everybody.' I don't think that's the way to go about it. I think if you have something to say, say it. If you don't have anything to say, don't manufacture something that you think people want to hear. Just be yourself. ... (Big moments) are when I get in my zone. That's when everything kind of closes in and you're ... more intensely focused than you ever are. ... It just feels different when those big moments at the end of the game come and it's do or die. It's like what are you gonna do if the coverage takes away the play that you have. You're gonna have to do something. So if you're thinking freely and you know you've put in the prep to not be worried about seeing ... you're not thinking about all the stuff, you're just reacting. Because you know the confidence in your prep that you have. And so that allows me to play free in those situations."
On self-doubt:
"I was putting in the same work (at Ohio State) that I always put in and I wasn't playing. Of course there was self-doubt in that moment. I mean when you don't play for three years and you're putting in the work. And you feel like you're practicing really well. And you feel like you could go out there and make plays and do what you've always done but you're not getting the opportunity to show what you can do. It's frustrating. And there were times when I started updating that resume. You know, thinking about being an investment banker or something like that. But fortunately, the work that I put in during those three years really paid off. You know, I got better each year. And I was very worried about getting on the field and playing. But at the same time, I had people around me that really allowed me to focus on getting better every single day ... worked really hard in the weight room. Kept getting better during practice. And the rest took care of itself. Just unfortunately, not there (in Columbus)."
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