Super Bowl 2022: Bengals QB Joe Burrow playing with a swagger and making nicknames for himself

Joe Burrow may lead the NFL in nicknames. He hopes everyone will be able to call him Super Bowl champ on Sunday night.

Burrow has quickly established himself as one of the best young quarterbacks in the league. He’s sparked the Bengals’ turnaround from two wins in 2020 — the season before they drafted Burrow No. 1 overall — to playing in Super Bowl LVI against the Rams on Sunday.

Along the way, everything Burrow has done has received a lot of attention and fanfare: his clothes and style, the bling he wears, the Cartier sunglasses, smoking cigars after victories and his "Get the Gat" dance with cigar in mouth in the locker room after the Bengals clinched the AFC North.

All of this has led to Burrow garnering numerous monikers, including Joe Cool, Joe Brrr, Joe Sheisty, Joey Franchise, Smokin’ Joe, Jackpot Joey, The Tiger King, and of course, Joey B. Which is his favorite?

"I don't know. I have a lot of them," Burrow said. "Just call me Joe. Whatever anybody wants to call me is OK with me."

That response would seem to indicate that Joe Cool is the most fitting. Burrow is unbelievably calm and poised for someone in only his second NFL season.

Burrow withstood nine sacks against the Titans in the divisional round and led the Bengals to the win. He brought them back from 21-3 down in Kansas City to win the AFC Championship.

Maybe Joey Comeback should be added to the list.

Burrow has led the Bengals’ remarkable rebirth from one of the NFL’s worst franchises to one win away from their first Super Bowl championship.

When Burrow was coming out of LSU after leading the Tigers to the national championship, there were people who said he should tell the Bengals not to take him with the No. 1 pick because he wouldn’t play for the perennial losers. Burrow said that was never a consideration.

"I never thought about telling the Bengals not to draft me," Burrow said. "I was just happy to be in the position that I was in. Being the potential No. 1 pick, that was exciting for me. I would never throw that opportunity away."

Burrow tore his ACL in Week 11 of the 2020 season, but he came back with a vengeance in Year 2. He threw for 4,611 yards and 34 touchdowns and led the NFL with a completion percentage of 70.4.

"He’s like a magician out there when he’s commanding us and telling us what’s going on and what he’s feeling when we’re going against defenses," receiver Tyler Boyd said. "He makes our job easier."

Burrow led the Bengals to their first playoff victory in 31 years and their first Super Bowl in 33. Next, he will try to do what Ken Anderson and Boomer Esiason couldn’t in the Bengals’ previous two trips to the big game — win the Super Bowl.

"We’ve never even spoken about the playoff drought once this whole season," Burrow said. "We have a really young team that doesn’t really understand the historical significance of what we’re doing. We’re just out there playing football and getting better doing it."

Coach Zac Taylor credits Cincinnati’s de facto GM Duke Tobin, the director of player personnel, for assembling this roster. Taylor concedes, though, that Burrow’s ability and presence have ignited the Bengals.

"We've got really good talent on this team, really good football character, and when you believe that your quarterback can take you the distance, it allows everybody just to play that one percent better," Taylor said.

"They know that trigger man is capable of doing some really special things. He’s helped us to take us to these heights. We have a lot of confidence in him. He’s got a lot of confidence in himself. It’s fun to be a part of."

Taylor was asked to describe Burrow’s swag. He said he’s not hip enough to do that, but Burrow has become a cult figure in Cincinnati and in the Taylor household.

"My sons buy the sunglasses, the 10-dollar version at least," Taylor said. "He’s made a statement on our youth around this city and probably around the country. There’s going to be a lot of kids emulating him.

"I would imagine nine to 10 months from now there’s going to be a lot of babies named Joe as well."