Joe Burrow is one tough cookie. A few months after suffering a nasty turf toe injury, the Cincinnati Bengals star quarterback is rapidly gearing up to play in Week 12 for his team. Burrow has already been listed as questionable for the Bengals' Week 12 game against the New England Patriots. Initially pegged to return by December, Burrow is set to completely fast-track his return from injury.
If it were up to Burrow, he'd probably want to play as soon as possible, suiting up for Cincinnati in Week 12. However, there's a good reason why the Bengals may elect to sit Burrow against the Patriots. As injury analyst Stephania Bell pointed out, the Bengals will be playing two games in five days this week. That's a lot of stress for a player who's just coming back from a major surgery.
“By being cleared for practice, Burrow has met the major criteria needed to start playing again,” Ben Baby wrote for ESPN. With more time and acclimation to the demands of football, Bell said, the soft tissue repair will continue to mature. But the Bengals also play on Thanksgiving Day, and playing two games in a five-day span is a significant workload… ‘When you're coming off an injury, and you haven't played a game in over two months, it is a discussion point,' Bell said. ‘You only have four days until the next time.'”
Burrow suffered a turf toe injury back in Week 2 agianst the Cleveland Browns. The Bengals quarterback was supposed to be out for three months, as the injury was so severe it needed surgery. However, Burrow has done the work to get back from his injury as soon as possible. There's questions about whether Burrow should even come back; Cincinnati isn't in a position to contend for the playoffs anymore.
However, Burrow has made it clear that he wants to return no matter what the playoff picture is. It cements the Bengals QB's image as someone who's dedicated to the game. As his center Ted Karras put it, “Joe's an all-time football freak. I wouldn't put anything past him. There's an innate factor in great men when they overcome any type of adversity. He has that.”
