NFL Coach Hypes Bengals' Joe Burrow: 'Baller...Tough as Nails' Ahead of Injury Return

Joe Burrow's growing list of injuries suffered in his NFL career isn't a concern to at least one NFL coach.

"Baller. Release. Decision-making. Tough as nails," the NFC offensive coach told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. "One play away from already having a ring. And young so the injury not as concerning."

The Cincinnati Bengals star was ranked as the second-best quarterback in the NFL in a poll of coaches, scouts and executives conducted by Fowler, finishing behind only Patrick Mahomes.

Burrow's ranking was a little bit of a surprise given his nightmarish 2023 season. He spent most of the early portion of the season battling through a calf strain suffered in training camp before suffering a season-ending wrist injury.

In total, Burrow threw for 2,309 yards and 15 touchdowns against six interceptions in 10 games. He averaged a career-low 6.3 yards per pass attempt, and ESPN's QBR metric ranked him as the 20th-best quarterback in the NFL.

"High level in all areas, can't stay healthy," one AFC scout said. "No [Joe] Mixon and the Tee Higgins holdout are big concerns."

Burrow previously suffered a torn ACL during the 2020 season. That accounts for half of his NFL seasons resulting in a season-ending injury. Burrow has also never gone through a full NFL training camp. Camp was limited in 2020 due to COVID-19, he was recovering from his torn ACL in 2021, he underwent an emergency appendectomy in 2022, and he suffered the calf strain early in camp last year.

As much as Burrow has performed like a superstar when he's on the field, it's fair to wonder whether he deserves higher ranking than Josh Allen, who has been consistently available for his team and is a superstar talent.