NFL star Orlando Brown Jr. talks admiration for Travis Kelce after leaving the Chiefs
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NFL star Orlando Brown Jr.’s appetite for success — and admiration for former Kansas City Chiefs teammate Travis Kelce — has increased since leaving the Kansas City Chiefs to join the Cincinnati Bengals.
In an exclusive interview with Page Six, the 28-year-old football pro explains how making the move to play offensive tackle for Ohio’s team has made him a more voracious athlete.
“I’m so appreciate to play for an organization that allows me to be myself every day,” he raves.
“For me, that’s created such a … hungrier football player — to be able to just focus on doing my job at the highest level, and going out there, going to work every single say and be myself.”
Brown played with the Chiefs for two seasons from 2021 until 2022 and helped lead the team to a Super Bowl win in the latter year. During that time, he developed an appreciation for teammate Kelce, 34 — whom he believes has brought a refreshing level of authenticity to the sport.
“Travis Kelce in Kansas City and everything he means to that organization and who he is as a person [is an example],” Brown says of the tight end.
He explains that the support Kelce receives from the Chiefs allows him to be “[himself] at work and not stress, necessarily, on the outside things.”
Brown elaborates, “I think a lot of times you kind of see [authenticity] in great players because naturally, the organization stands behind them.”
After signing a history-making contract with the Bengals in 2023, Brown feels he has the same means to soar like the “New Heights” podcast co-host.
The team enticed him with a four-year $64 million dollar deal that included a signing bonus over $31 million — the largest ever for an offensive lineman. Shortly after, he landed on Forbes’ highest paid athletes list at No. 38, joining the likes of soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo and basketball icon LeBron James.
“It gave me a better sense of comfortability, a better sense of knowing that I’ve got a four-year deal that I’ve signed,” he says, acknowledging that he had previously played “year to year.”
“I know that I’m going to be here, and it’s allowing me to really pour into the city, pour into myself, my teammates, my coaches, all those different things,” he says.
While he’s pleased with his salary, Brown admits that the lofty amount “adds pressure” to his performance on the field.
“It definitely adds pressure. Just because of the circumstances, man,” he says, emphasizing that he is protecting Joe Burrow — “one of the best quarterbacks in the league.”
The Maryland native — who played for the Baltimore Ravens before the Chiefs and Bengals — continues, “People say it all the time that the second most important position in football is the position to protect the quarterback. And that just so happens to be the position I play. It added pressure to the situation, I would say.”
Luckily, Brown works well under pressure, he says, and is looking forward to reliving the euphoric feeling of winning the Super Bowl — but this time with the Bengals.
“It was such a special feeling to be able to win it, with my teammates at the time, just knowing the amount of work that we have put in, the conversations that have been had and how hard it is to do,” he reflects.
“When you get deeper and deeper into the playoffs and as you get closer to the Super Bowl, you’ve got to be in the moment even more. I’m dialed in this season.”
While Brown is relishing in his role on the Bengals roster, he loves to see the Chiefs thrive from afar — especially when they beat the San Francisco 49ers at this year’s Super Bowl, their second consecutive victory at the big game.
“I was super happy for all of them, man. As I mentioned, it’s so hard to get there. It’s hard to do it twice. They’ve been able to do it three times,” he says, referring to the team’s 2020 win.
“And last year or two, they faced a lot of adversity as a football team that was a little bit unfamiliar. Having to go on the road and playing the AFC Championship game and win a game on the road, the Taylor Swift noise, all these different things that kind of go into it.”
Don’t get Brown wrong about Swift, though. He tells us that he applauds the pop superstar, 34, for her ability to galvanize a new and fervent NFL fanbase, given her headline-making romance with Kelce.
“It’s great. I feel like she’s awesome for the game. Just for the young girls at home watching and everything I feel like this would represent,” he opines. “This brand is great for the game. I love it.”
