CINCINNATI — As if Joe Burrow doesn't have enough to deal with, now he's apparently tasked with helping another famous Joe get out of prison.
In a letter to "Joe Burrows," Joe Exotic from Netflix's "Tiger King" called on the Bengals QB to do "a good deed" and help him raise $20,000 for a down payment to hire attorneys as he remains in federal prison for several charges, including his role in a murder-for-hire plot on Carole Baskin.
"Maybe paying it forward, God might help you get to the SuperBowl this year and I could go home for Christmas," said Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Allen Maldonado. "Then we can work together to stop animals from being in a cage."
Here's my letter to @JoeyB 🐅 Help stop this injustice done to me and then let's go keep animals from being in a cage together #tigerking #freejoeexotic pic.twitter.com/V96cwkNQDk
— Joe Exotic (@joe_exotic) September 14, 2023
Exotic accused Burrow of exploiting his name while "I sit innocent in an American Federal Prison."
"My life has been destroyed, my parents have died and I continue to fight cancer and 2 incurable diseases while you all ride fame and attention off my life's hard work."
While Burrow is mostly referred to by other nicknames like Joey B, Joe Brr and Joe Shiesty nowadays, some were calling him "Tiger King" when he was first drafted to Cincinnati from LSU in 2020. NFL on FOX once edited Burrow's face over Exotic's in the "I Saw a Tiger" music video.
Burrow, though, said at the time he hadn't seen the Netflix hit.
"I just wasn't really into the show too much, so I didn't really watch it," Burrow said.
Based on Exotic's misspelling of Burrow's last name, it sounds like he isn't too familiar with his fellow Joe, either. It's unclear at this time if Burrow has responded to Exotic (but we're betting not).
