The NFL season is in full swing. As happens every year, injuries are rearing their ugly heads. As fantasy football managers prepare to set Week 13 lineups, it’s important to stay informed on the latest injury news. Joe Burrow has not played since Week 2 due to a serious turf toe injury. What is his current status and outlook for this week?
Is Joe Burrow Playing Week 13?
Burrow went down during Cincinnati’s Week 2 victory over Jacksonville after being tackled awkwardly while attempting to escape pressure. Medical professionals diagnosed him with a Grade 3 turf toe injury and projected a minimum three-month recovery period. Dr. Norman Waldrop performed the surgical procedure at Birmingham’s Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center.
The severity of what Burrow is dealing with cannot be overstated. A Grade 3 turf toe diagnosis means complete tears of all soft tissues in the big toe, encompassing both ligaments and the joint capsule. This represents the most severe classification of turf toe, an injury that medical professionals consider one of the most difficult to recover from in professional football.
The Bengals opened Burrow’s 21-day practice window on November 10, allowing him to participate in limited on-field activities without counting against the 53-man roster. Burrow returned to practice on a limited basis as part of his recovery from the toe injury, marking a meaningful step forward and indicating he was making progress toward a potential return.
Burrow came close to making his return last week against the New England Patriots. He participated fully in practice on Wednesday and Thursday before being downgraded to limited on Friday.
On Saturday, Ian Rapoport confirmed the Bengals would not activate Burrow from injured reserve for Week 12. “Joe Burrow, attempting to come back just over two months removed from turf toe surgery, will not play this week against the Patriots,” Rapoport reported. While his surgically repaired left toe was fine, Burrow was sore after two full practices. He could have been ready to play if needed, but Taylor made the prudent decision to withhold him to avoid having him play two games in five days.
Burrow is playing tonight against the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving. Taylor confirmed Monday that he anticipates Burrow taking the field for the first time in nearly three months. The Bengals officially activated Burrow from injured reserve earlier this week, clearing him to suit up for the prime-time divisional clash.
Burrow beat the original three-month timeline by a few weeks, returning just over two months after surgery. When asked about returning to play for the 3-8 Bengals, Burrow stated, “I’m not going to sit if healthy”. The quarterback maintained his plan to return for Week 13 throughout his recovery, calling the Thanksgiving Day showdown against Baltimore “very meaningful”.
Burrow’s Fantasy Football Outlook
Is he ready (toe)? Is he coming back too fast? How much will the Tee Higgins injury factor into all of this?
I’d be lying to you if I said I had all of the answers. Or, really, any of them. We have no way of knowing what this is going to look like in his first game action in over two months against a team that is trending in as positive of a direction as they have all season.
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Sportsbooks have more knowledge than any of us and they have this game with an implied total of 52.5 points: I’ll take their word for it. Burrow has cleared 22 fantasy points in seven of 10 career games with a point total of 50+ points and that’s generally what I’m using as a baseline.
Three of Baltimore’s four highest pressure rate games have come over in the past three weeks and that is the path where I think this could go sideways. If Burrow is going to show rust, this feels like the right spot, but he is coming off of his best season in terms of pressured numbers (104 passer rating with a 15-to-3 touchdown-to-interception rate).
Your tolerance to take on the risk that comes with Burrow hinges on your alternative option. I’ve got him penciled in as my QB9 this week, just behind the red hot Jacoby Brissett (769 passing yards over the past two weeks and 44+ passes thrown in three straight) and ahead of the Jared Goff/Bo Nix tier.
— Kyle Soppe, PFSN Fantasy Analyst