That power lunch in Midtown Manhattan Thursday where Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow met his new Pro Bowl protector turned out to be an X-and-O session with Orlando Brown Jr., as they munched on Shake Shack's high-end burgers and chicken at Brown's hotel.
"He's a lot cooler," Brown said Friday of his first impression. "You hear the nickname, 'Joe Cool,' but sometimes, you know, you hear that, but he's a lot cooler."
Brown, the four-time Pro Bowl tackle, visited Paycor Stadium Friday to sign his reported four-year, $64 million deal and revealed he talked all sorts of schemes with his new quarterback. The one that beat his Chiefs in three of four games the past two years that included a split in the AFC title games.
"I told him this. I've seen him make some crazy throws. I've seen him make some big plays in some big moments," Brown said. "And you can just tell he's a fierce competitor and he does what he needs to do to get that team over the top."
After coming off two years blocking for NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes, Brown says it's not lost on him he's going to end up playing with two of the league's most dominant quarterbacks. Plus, the Lamar Jackson Ravens drafted Brown in 2019 and that's where he spent his first three seasons before going to the Chiefs, meaning he's already blocked for two NFL MVPs and he doesn't turn 27 until May 2.
"Insane, man. It's insane," Brown said. "I was telling (Burrow), I'm in this for Super Bowls. That's what is most important to me. To him as well. Just talking to him, he seems like an extreme competitor. We ate pretty quickly. I feel like we talked for two hours."
Brown says they talked all kinds of offense.
"I love ball and I was just really curious how things were called. Certain formations, pass protections, cadences," Brown said. "Hearing Joe talk about different plays, different route concepts, things that he likes, it seems like he's got a ton of confidence in his skill set matched up with the system and matched up with Coach (Zac) Taylor."
Brown came to town expressing his desire to get involved in the community immediately. He's extremely active in the fight against diabetes and this past season was named a weekly NFLPA Community MVP after he donated $50,000 to Children's Mercy Hospital's Type 1 Diabetes research center and spent more than an hour visiting with the patients.
Brown's father, longtime Browns and Ravens offensive lineman Orlando Brown Sr., died at age 40 from diabetic ketoacidosis.
