Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

Joe Burrow reveals he had ruptured appendix, discusses recovery

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Jason Burgos | Last updated 8/17/22

Cincinnati Bengals superstar Joe Burrow will not play in either of the team’s final two games on the 2022 preseason schedule.

At the end of July, Burrow went under the knife and have his appendix removed. Appendectomies are a fairly common procedure and the assumption was that the organization’s franchise quarterback would be back in a week or so. However, as time passed Burrow got no closer to returning from to the field.

It took several weeks before the 25-year-old finally returned to the practice with his teammates as they get ready to attempt a return to the Super Bowl this season. On Wednesday, Burrow revealed that his appendix issue was far more severe than originally thought, and the organ actually burst, via ESPN's Ben Baby.

“It wasn’t normal appendicitis that you hear about,” Burrow told reporters this week. “I didn’t really feel much. Just getting checked out and had some discomfort so we thought we’d get it checked out. Turns out I had [a burst appendix]. So we had to get it fixed.”

Due to the surgery and the follow-up recovery, Burrow admitted this week he lost a good deal of weight and will need time to build his body and strength back up after not having his normal velocity when he returned to drills recently. With his abilities not quite at NFL levels, the young star is now expected to sit out the remaining two games for the Bengals this summer and instead focus on rebuilding his body.

“I was feeling the best I had coming out of the offseason training. Now I have to get back to that. Have to go back to the high school days when you’re trying to gain 20 pounds in a couple of week span. So we’re forcing [food] down as much as we can. Throughout offseason training, you’re working on building your body up and getting more athletic, stronger, bigger, faster. So then when you get to camp you don’t have to worry about all that stuff, you can focus on football, but when you have that surgery and lose your strength you’ve got to put that at the forefront again to build yourself back up.”
Joe Burrow on preseason plans [via bengals.com]

Burrow missing all three preseason games is not the end of the world, especially if he can work with his receivers in training camp drills. However, there are benefits to taking hits from competition that are not looking to keep him healthy.

It is very possible that Burrow could get off to a slow start in 2022 as he builds his strength and technique back up after his appendectomy.

This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission.

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