Christmas came early for the Cincinnati Bengals offensive line, all thanks to quarterback Joe Burrow.
Burrow, 28, gifted his linemen with authentic Japanese Katana swords on Thursday, December 19.
The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. reported each sword was unique and came with its own story. Burrow laid them all out in a room and had his linemen pick their favorite.
“Joe does a great job at buying gifts that are extremely meaningful,” left tackle Orlando Brown told Dehner. “The fact that he bought me a sword, it’s the most ancient form of respect.”
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Last year, Burrow gave his entire offensive line cruise trips — but insisted he wouldn’t be joining his teammates on the open seas.
“I don’t like boats, not a boat guy,” Burrow told reporters at the time.
Burrow added, “You’re stuck out there. What if something happens?”
NFL quarterbacks buying their linemen lavish gifts has become the trendy norm these days, with some of Burrow’s leaguemates already coming through in the clutch this year.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes gave his linemen multiple items including silver Rolex watches, Normatec Elite compression boots, white framed sunglasses and black cowboy boots from Lucchese. All of the gifts were packed into red Yeti Tundra Haul coolers.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, meanwhile, gave all of his linemen brand-new Toyota trucks.
“Boys, I just want to say Merry Christmas [and] I got some gifts for you guys,” Purdy, 24, said in a Thursday, December 19, video shared by the team. “Sorry for the wait, but if you want to follow me outside. Let’s go.”
Once outside, the linemen were greeted by a fleet of trucks all fitted with giant red bows.
“Let’s go, Toyota, baby,” Purdy said. “Alright, so we got five Sequoias, five Tundras. You guys can check ’em out, but these are yours, so merry Christmas. Appreciate you guys. Thanks for all you do.”
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As for Burrow, gifting the swords comes on the heels of a break-in at his Ohio home on December 9.
While Burrow and the Bengals were in Texas to play the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football, his residence was targeted. Model Olivia Ponton, who was at Burrow’s home at the time, told authorities the place had been “ransacked.”
Burrow addressed the break-in on December 11, saying he felt like his “privacy has been violated in more ways than one.”
The Bengals return to action on Sunday, December 22, against the Cleveland Browns.
