Mike Hilton | Renee All Dey

Joe Burrow is more swaggy than Chad Kelly.

Oh it's tough.

Hey guys. Welcome to Renee all Day.

Joining me today Mike Helton.

So what's up. How are you good? I'm good. How are you doing?

I'm good. I feel like you're always good.

You know, I try to be. I try to bring some positive light.

Seven years with the Bengals.

No, it was seven seven years total.

Seven years total? Sorry, seven years total?

Seven years.

How are we feeling at this point? I mean to be in the league for that amount of time? How are you feeling?

Ill? Feel good?

You know, just throughout my career you kind of learn how to take care of your body and what your body really needs to make it through the season. And you know that really the older I got, the wiser I got about that, And you know, I feel good going into year seven.

What's your number one takeaway for where you're at at this point in your career to like to feel your best?

Really?

First, the uh chiropractor, you know, That's that's my main thing, just keeping my body in line.

As much as possible.

You know, all the other stuff kind of comes in the hand, weightlifting massages, But when I know my body needs a full reset.

I go to the cor right, get.

A little adjustment.

It's always a little scary, though.

It doesn't scare you, no, not at all.

It's the best feeling in the work.

Put it into it and just let it rest. The mannequins scare your big prank car not really.

So when they asked me to do that, I really didn't want to at first. Why it just wasn't me. But when when they kind of explained the idea to me, I was like, you know what, I feel like I would be the perfect person for it. And you know, it was a good when everybody got a good laugh.

Got to keep the keep the spirits good, and keep everybody on their toes. You just recently renew renewed your wedding boughs.

What all went into that? Give me a little bit of the romance.

It seemed like, I mean, your renewals far more fancy than even my my actual wedding. You spared no money on that line.

No, So when we first got married was in my aunt's backyard, so it was a very intimate, kind of small maybe about twenty thirty people, you know, the close family. And we always said for our five year. You know, I was going to give her a big wedding that she wanted. So we founded an event planner, a wedding planner, and we let her do her magic, and you know, it's it was one of the best things we ever done.

And you know, I love that.

When I dropped the video on my Instagram, make sure y'all check that out.

Oh when's that happening?

It sounds like in the video back in the next couple of weeks, you know, once he just done editing, I definitely put it on the ig.

Did you write your own bounced?

Oh?

Is there like a line you're really proud of or something that you're like I got.

Her with that?

Oh yeah, everybody said that this line kind of stood out. I said, nobody's perfect, but you're perfect to me. And you know, I got all the alls and everything in the back, so I kind of knew that was that was the good line.

What did you guys meet? What's your love story?

We go all the way back to seventh grade? Whoa seventh grade? And what what's crazy? I was the new kid in school and I remember to this day we were in gym class. I didn't know nobody, so I was kind of by myself. She walked up to me and just, you know, hey, how you doing, Just like, hey, you know, we just kind of started talking and then we kind of we kind of became best friends at first. We never really officially started dating til my sophomore year

Here we are now.

Oh my gosh, So who reached out to who first?

To go are we doing this?

I definitely reached out first. I did you know.

Once I got done with college and everything, I was like, hey, you remember that promise we always said? She said, yeah, I don't have nobody. You don't have nobody. Let's let's see we still got it. And here we are now.

So here's the question, how how did you break out of the friend zone? Was it a little awkward to go, we're doing this? So now we're taking it romantique.

You know, we were best friends, but you kind of know way you got a little feeling towards each other. So that's what it was, and you know, it just it's funny how it worked out there.

Well, I love that.

I love that. Okay, so you've got two kids, You've got a.

Four year old and a year and a half.

This sholds exactly.

How do you balance doing this, being so busy doing a million things having kids. I mean, we were kind of talking a little bit off camera about what it's like when you're losing sleep, and I feel like, no matter what your situation is, you're still going to be going through the ringer a little Yeah.

I got it. It's just part of life.

Yeah.

I know what I do is for them, you know what I mean. And I know whether I'm tired or worn out. I know when I come here it's grand old, grand old grind. But as soon as I step out the building, I flip that switch to daddy mode.

Yeah.

I get those couple hours.

Because they usually sleep around nine thirty years, So I get those couple hours, you know, bathe and play with them, talk to him, you know, just even though I'm going for today, let him know that I'm still there dad, and I'll be there for the day.

What's your advice on getting your kid to sleep? My kid's putting me through the ringer. Right now, she will not sleep in her own bed. I don't know what's happening anymore. What should I do?

So I say that the first time you put them down, staying there with them, you know, let them feel comfortable and everything. But the main kids, when they wake up two hours later or four hours later, you cannot go back in.

The room with them.

So what do you do?

You just go sorry, I like, go lay down. They'll cry herself to sleep as well as it sounds.

They scream do this, but eventually they'll fall asleep, and it's been working for her.

So see where I screwed myself on that is that by the time I thought to do that, she could already get out of the crib. And now I'm like, oh my god, was She's just standing there at the door.

What am I supposed to do?

This is crazy.

You cannot let her in their room there, let her in the bed. She has to go right back to her bed.

She fully sleeps in my bed. Now it's a disaster.

Got to get out of that bad.

Okay, Well I will consider that when I get home.

I'm gonna listen.

We gotta have a little heart to heart.

We got to figure this out here.

You are a very happy, go lucky You seem like you're always in a good mood.

Things are always going good for you.

So my big question to you is, when was the last time you cried?

Last time I cried?

Why didn't you get sad loves?

Are we talking sad crying? Okay, hey, I don't want to.

I mean, happy tears are beautiful, happy tears, we love those.

I want the sad tears.

Sad tears.

It's actually really sad.

I actually feel bad question.

Honestly, I would say after the AOC Chairship game like that, that that one kind of cooked me deep because I knew how close we were and we lost by three. But you know that that might have been the last time I was just sad.

Sad wise, yeah, yeah, very I think a lot of people were crying, colective crying. Yeah, if you want to tap into your emotions, what do you do?

Is there like a song you want to listen to?

Is there a movie that kind of like trigger some emotions for you?

So really, it's not even a song. It's just not a certain song. It's just a vibe. Like if I'm want to get into my emotional side, I definitely throw on some slow R and B where there's old school R and B, new scar and B. Just that smooth vibe where I kind of just take that breath and let it flow out.

Yeah. Yeah, I would say just that music vibe for me.

Musical through it. Sometimes you just got to, you know, have a.

Moment a little different if you actually listen to it.

So okay, so you've been in the league a long time, seven years. As we've said, what are some of the perks that come with the status that you have within this league and on this team?

Obviously Number one is the fan recognition, you know, especially around here. I'm not say, I'm not on Joe Burrow and Jamar's Chase where I need security and stuff like that, but I can go out and you know, get get recognized pretty easily, sir. It's kind of cool, especially when it's kids. You know, you just make that kids moment when you give them a high five, just something light,

Is there any moment in particular that like really stands out to you, like one of those like really great fan interactions.

Uh yeah, I want to say this training camp, I can't remember. It was a little girl. I signed everything and I just gave him my cleats and she really did just like started crying. I was just like I got gave her a hug and everything, and you know it was just a good moment.

Yeah, that's really nice.

So with the fans, that relationship so great. What about the veteran status in the locker room, you have rookies going out running some errands for you, getting you like your snacks and your drink.

Yeah, that's a shout out to all our rookies in the corner back room, DJ Ivy, DJ Turner. They make sure our snacks are are there in handy when we need them. But it's a lot of different things. Snacks. Every every every Saturday before a game, they'll go get us a bunk like they don't know that yet, but they will go get us butt cakes like nothing.

Cake exactly great?

What kind do you get?

This is new?

Because I just had one. If you haven't got it, the.

Carrick cake, I know I should have done.

I've been told I know I screwed up.

You get it.

You get different things from carrying the pads in after practice, so you definitely take advantage of it certainly.

Certainly, who is your favorite big man that you've tackled?

Oh that's oh, there's no question. Derek harry Man. I got him a good three times in that one game. Man, it was some good licks on him, so that those that was the one hang.

On to those ones. Okay, so some Pittsburgh things. Okay, what's a yinser?

So it took me to about my third year to figure out exactly what it is. So down South we say y'all, yes, Pittsburgh yinser is y'all. Where I'm from, We're like, what are y'all doing? They're like, what ends doing? So I would hear it all around. I never really understood it. I was like, yeah, that's I can't get adjusted to say yes at all. But they everybody says it out there.

So that was the hard one for me.

It's so weird. I don't know why.

Like I'm from Canada and I adjusted to saying y'all.

No, it's just like y'all.

Take that, but yeah, but they faithfully says out there faith.

Come on Pittsburgh, the sandwiches, the coal saw and the fries on the sandwiches are.

You wasn't a fan? Wasn't a fan?

Interesting, was not a fan. Everybody told me tried it out there, and I tried it once. I can't remember the exact name of it.

Where it was we were talking about it earlier. I can't remember the name of it starts with a P. I think, oh, man, I know that talk about But I had it once.

Everything, Yeah, and it was.

I was not a fan. It was not for me. You need it.

I also don't really like a potato and like a breakfast burrito.

I don't think you need it.

You understand, you understand.

You get it.

Just give me the goods.

I don't need the extra I don't need the added calories.

You know what are.

We doing better bridges Cincinnati or Pittsburgh?

This one?

Oh no, The bridges in Pittsburgh a lot nicer. But it's crazy. They they're formed the same way they think about Pittsburgh. They got this one bridge that opens up to the city. Yeah, just like Cincinnati. You come around that curve right out seventy one, there's the city. But Theydge it's a tunnel that you going in for about a mile and then so as you come out, the whole city of Pittsburgh's right there after.

Pretty. It's very nice. I will give them that I've gotten a customs because I feel like our bridges here esthetically are maybe more beautiful. But yeah, that skyline, when you come out of that tunnel and you see it.

You're like, oh, it definitely hits.

It is very very cool.

Yeah, it's beautiful. It really is. Okay, let's get into this. You want to do a little true or false.

Let's see what you're made of.

Let's do it.

I gotta do as I'm a little blind.

Oh yay, We've got thumbs up and thumbs.

Here's your props. Okay.

The Bengals defense has thirteen interceptions last year.

Thirteen true ding ding ding.

True, you have the second most career interceptions of any current Bengal.

True false, Who got me? Maybe Cheeto?

You have the most?

I got the most.

Burrow is the NFL's all time leader in career completion percentage. True the other day at Jamar is the only Bengal with one thousand plus receiving yards in the first two seasons.

Say false, It is false.

AJ Green also did it.

Okay, but three of the five largest home crowds in Bengels history occurred during the twenty twenty two season.

The Whiteout game, I'm sure that Monday Night against Buffalo. I'm sure. What could be the other? I don't say false. I can't remember. I don't know what other games.

It is false, but it's false because it was four out of five oh not three, So even more, that's very impressive. Do you really like go in and like remember games specifically like that?

Definitely, especially like ones like just have a different entity to them. You get that feeling and you just know it's gonna be one of those nights.

Drop right back in there. Yeah.

The Bengals defense did not allow a touchdown the first quarter of each of the final thirteen games last season, including the playoffs.

In the first quarter. Yeah, I don't know, Dese.

Is it more fun to play for the Bengals than the Steelers?

Yeah?

Way up there.

Get that that the terrible terrible towel towel curse is real.

No, it's not.

That's a tongue twister terrible curse that got me. Joe Burrow is more swaggy than Chad Kelly.

It's tough because Chad was a reward, but I gotta geared to Joe.

So yeah, and this brings us back to something we were talking about earlier. Skyline is better than primante.

That's what it is. Yes, Ding ding chili guided anything.

It's a good chili.

I like it.

I like it on my hot dog, not on spaghetti. If you put it on spaghetti, I don't. I just don't know.

About you don't mind it on the spaghetti. I don't need it in like a sloppy Joe form. But on the hot dog, that's really where it's. That is where it is. That Okay, So coming into this season, what is your advice for some of the rookies, some of the guys that are just making their way into a league, and like specifically on this team, you guys have all eyes on you.

What's some advice you have for those guys?

Man, Just embrace it, you know, uh, embrace where this moment, where this team is, and know we're contenders and really have a chance to go win the super Bowl.

You know, yep, you kind of you're adding to that to that mix.

You know, just be the best you and when you get the opportunity to go out there and help us win.

Oh, yes, one last one.

Do you have any hidden talents? Because I feel like I have one for you.

I really don't you mine, honestly, don't are you?

Like?

Maybe it's like, aren't really funny? It could be funny?

Am I? Funny? Yeah? Am I?

I mean I've not been here long enough with you to fully engage in that.

My hitting talent.

I guess it's just my my energy, you know, Like I said, I bring positive energy. I try to keep a smile on my face and try to try to brighten people's day.

So here's one that I'm gonna throw your way. I mean, maybe it's just something you can do and you have a little downtime. I feel like you could do good voiceovers.

You've got a great voice voiceovers.

You have like a really interesting voice.

Could you do a cartoon or something that's not a bad idea? That's something that I actually never tried, but you know, there might be something like put in your repertoire.

You gotta test the.

Waters little yeah, once you're done, you know, let me know. We'll get we'll start it out. Mike, Thank you so much for joining me, Best of luck,