Report: Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow Appears To Hint At Possible Early Retirement Due To Injuries

Burrow’s list of football-related injuries is long and is not exclusive to the NFL. He sustained a wrist fracture at Ohio State and torn rib cartilage at LSU. Borrow missed the majority of his rookie season in 2021 after suffering an ACL tear, MCL tear, PCL tear, and torn meniscus. He suffered a few minor injuries during the 2021 season. He sustained an MCL sprain in the Super Bowl.

Burrow missed much of the preseason last year due to a calf strain. He would aggravate the injury in Week 2. Burrow wouldn’t miss a game of the 2023 season until he injured his wrist in Week 11.

Cincinnati Bengals QB has “football mortality” on his mind

Per a transcription of Burrow’s comments on Tuesday by the NFL’s website, the star quarterback said he’s questioned his “football mortality” because of the amount of injuries:

“Whenever the injuries start to stack up, your football mortality kind of comes into the back of your mind,” Burrow said following mandatory minicamp practice. “So that’s definitely something I’ve thought about and something I have had to fight through.”

Football mortality sounds an awful lot like retirement.

Burrow said he’s “built” for the challenge of overcoming his injuries. However, he said it is a challenge when the injuries “stack” up, and he’s forced to take fewer practice reps than he’d like in order for him to be the best version of himself.

Burrow said there’s a mental toll to the injuries:

“You always forget how hard it is coming back from injury — that’s every time it happens,” Burrow said. “There’s always peaks where you’re like, ‘I’m feeling great,’ and then a couple of months later you have a couple of days where it’s like, ‘Man, I’m not feeling that great.’ In the past I pushed through that and caused problems for myself, and this year I’m not doing that.”

Andrew Luck retired early due to injuries

We’ve seen one elite quarterback in recent memory retire early due to repeated injuries. Former Indianapolis Colts No. 1 pick in 2012, Andrew Luck, retired after seven seasons in the league. Luck cited the constant cycle of injury and rehab as the reason he stepped away from football early.

Burrow doesn’t appear ready to retire this offseason. He’s working as hard as he can to get back on the field and return the Bengals to a Super Bowl. However, Burrow has considered, at least in the back of his mind, that he might have to retire early due to injuries.

How long will he be able to keep that thought in the backseat if/when he suffers another injury?