Linebacker Oren Burks was selected last year by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft without much fanfare. He played in 14 games in his first year in the pros but was not able to make a significant impact as part of the Packers’ defense.
That being said, his subpar rookie season isn’t going to let Burks aspire for a much better showing next season.
Speaking with Mike Spofford of Packers.com, Burks sounded a bit disappointed about how he performed in his rookie year in the NFL though he strongly maintained his belief in his ability to do more moving forward.
“I feel like that’s a pretty big piece, but even more, I want to prove it to myself,” he said. “I know what type of ball I’m capable of playing, and I’m feeling like I didn’t live up to my own expectations. I’m hungry to get back after it, to prove to myself, prove to the team, my worth.”
Burks managed to get plugged into the starting lineup as early as October, but his snap counts fell when defensive coordinator Mike Pettine decided to utilize more the pair of Blake Martinez and Antonio Morrison, as noted by Spofford. After enjoying 104 defensive snaps in the first six weeks of the season, Burks was only able to see 18 snaps over the remainder of the campaign.
Nevertheless, Oren Burks is excited about what lies ahead of him, thanks to his seemingly bottomless reserve of motivation.
“I feel like I got a taste of what I need to do this offseason to be ready to go when we come back for OTAs and get ready for the season,” he said. “I’m excited for the future. My best ball is ahead of me. I’m hungry. I’m hungry to get back at it.”
Burks, a product of Vanderbilt, had 18 solo and six assisted tackles in 2018.
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