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- Joe Burrow has become the leader of the Cincinnati Bengals after just two seasons.
- In a recent interview with ESPN, defensive tackle D.J. Reader says Burrow won over the locker room during a meeting on racial injustice in 2020.
- Keep up with all of the latest sports stories here.
Despite having just completed his second year in the National Football League, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is already one of the team’s leaders.
In addition to winning his teammates over with his obviously excellent on-the-field play, Burrow reportedly earned their respect off the field during a meeting on racial injustice back in 2020.
According to a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Burrow “decided to address the team by telling a personal story about the racial injustice a Black teammate experienced during their high school basketball days growing up in Athens, Ohio.”
Burrow decided to address the team by telling a personal story about the racial injustice a Black teammate experienced during their high school basketball days growing up in Athens, Ohio. During one game, Burrow said, people in the stands yelled racial slurs at the friend. Burrow described feeling shaken and upset during the game, and what it felt like afterward as the two of them sat in the back of the team bus. Burrow vowed to fight against such behavior for the rest of his life. [via ESPN]
“He kind of broke down talking about it,” Reader told ESPN. “He’s a guy who stood there and he supported his friend as he should because you know it’s not right. As a person it meant a lot to hear how he stood up for him. [Racism] is not something he’s not just now learning.”
It just goes to show that the ability to lead an NFL team goes far beyond the ability to fit a throw into a tight window.
RELATED: Bengals Fans Respond To Joe Burrow’s Apology After Super Bowl Loss
Burrow and the Bengals ultimately lost Super Bowl LVI to Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp, and the rest of the Los Angeles Rams by a score of 23-20. Burrow completed 22 of 33 passes for 263 yards and one touchdown. He was also sacked seven times, which is a Super Bowl record.