Former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna revealed on The Ryen Russillo Podcast that an ex-teammate and wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals played an entire game while intoxicated.
“There was a time that I played a game with a guy that was drunk in the huddle,” Kitna said.
Kitna, who played for the Bengals from 2001 to 2005, said players were expected to show up to the stadium at least two hours prior to kickoff, but this unidentified wideout showed up less than an hour before the game started. When Russillo asked if members of the organization were aware that this player was under the influence, Kitna said he was unsure if the staff knew, adding “that was kind of his normal.”
Kitna said this player still managed to put up some impressive stats, despite being hammered. “He was drunk and had close to 200 yards receiving now,” he recalled. “So, it was crazy.”
A number of former NFL players have admitted to drinking before games. Clinton Portis told the Washington Post in 2017 that he, Santana Moss, and the late Sean Taylor would take a shot of Hennessy before games to boost their adrenaline. “Not like going out and getting sloppy wasted. Just adrenaline,” Portis said. “You know, you take a shot and you were done with it. Me, Santana and Sean, we did this for a year and a half before anybody knew. We never told anybody. It was just, hey, here’s a little sip, bam, that was it.”
That same year, Josh Gordon admitted in an interview with GQ that, in addition to drinking before games, he would also take “the biggest bong rip I could.”
“I used to love Grand Marnier,” Gordon said. “I could drink it down smooth. I could usually drink a lot of it. But if it wasn’t that, it might be a whiskey or something. And I would drink probably like half a glass, or a couple shots to try and warm my system up, basically. To get the motor running. That’s what I would do for games.”
