Terry "Tank" Johnson was milling about with some of his Chicago Bears teammates during media day at Super Bowl 41 in Miami when someone popped the question.
Why does such a big man (180cm, 136kg) need so many guns?
"Ah, well, I'm not sure, know what I mean?" Johnson said. "I'm from Arizona, man. I live in the desert and that's the kind of stuff we do in the desert."
At a time when when the US is weakening its gun laws, more US athletes are turning to firearms for protection and security.
The 25-year-old Johnson was released from an Illinois prison on Sunday after serving 60 days for a parole violation in connection with a gun charge.
Johnson was sentenced to 120 days in March following a raid at his home where he was charged with the illegal possession of six firearms and about 500 rounds of ammunition.
Johnson has been arrested three times since 2002 and police have been called to his home more than 30 times.
Soon after his latest arrest, Johnson's best friend and "bodyguard" was shot and killed at a Chicago nightclub.
Despite being a free man for the first time in two months, Johnson's immediate football career remains in limbo.
He is scheduled to meet with National Football League commissioner Roger Goodell in New York today and could face a lengthy suspension from the league.
Athletes have been known to take guns into the locker room, on team flights and carry them in their cars.
"The majority of players in the NFL have guns," former NFL tackle Lomas Brown told the New York Times in 2003.
"About every player I played with had a gun. Almost every player I knew had one. Guns are rampant in football. You have all these players packing guns wherever they go. It is a disaster waiting to happen," Brown said.
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