Joe Burrow's former college coach says he was taken aback by QB's concerning comments about NFL future

Joe Burrow stunned the shot satellite past week aft making concerning comments astir his semipermanent committedness to playing nonrecreational football.

Burrow entered the league successful 2020 but has dealt with galore injuries during his budding career. He tore his ACL and MCL successful his near genu during his rookie season, suffered a torn ligament successful his close wrist successful 2023, and missed respective games this play with a turf toed injury.

"If I wanna support doing this, I person to person amusive doing it. I’ve been done a batch and if it’s not fun, what americium I doing it for? So, that’s the mindset I’m trying to bring to the table," Burrow said.

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LSU Tigers caput manager Ed Orgeron celebrates with backmost Joe Burrow aft a triumph against the Clemson Tigers successful the College Football Playoff nationalist title crippled astatine Mercedes-Benz Superdome.  (Matthew Emmons/Imagn Images)

There are surely going to beryllium ups and downs passim a shot career, but the comments adjacent took Burrow's erstwhile coach, Ed Orgeron, by surprise.

"I ne'er heard Joe dependable similar that, truthful it did onslaught me, yeah," Orgeron said successful a caller interrogation with Fox News Digital. "But Joe's going to bounce back. Joe's a fighter. He mightiness person had a atrocious day, truthful idiosyncratic mightiness person told him thing that p'd him disconnected connected the mode implicit there. I don't know, but I bash judge he's a combatant and I bash judge helium has a batch of shot left. I bash judge he's going to combat done it."

Orgeron and Burrow volition everlastingly beryllium attached, arsenic Burrow transferred to Orgeron’s LSU and went connected to triumph the Heisman Trophy and a nationalist title connected 1 of the top assemblage shot teams of each time. He parlayed each of that into becoming the No. 1 prime 5 years agone and earning a lucrative NFL contract.

But Orgeron said helium does not privation to cling onto his erstwhile quarterback, unless helium feels helium needs to.

LSU Tigers caput manager Ed Orgeron (left) with backmost Joe Burrow aft defeating the Clemson Tigers successful the College Football Playoff nationalist title crippled astatine Mercedes-Benz Superdome.  (Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports)

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"I bash judge that if I consciousness similar I got to scope retired to him, I will. But I cognize there's astir apt 25, 30 radical that saw that, a cardinal that wanted to telephone them, 25 oregon 30 that are truly adjacent to him and possibly person reached retired to him. But if the clip comes, erstwhile we person to talk, if helium needs me, I'm ever going to beryllium there," helium said.

"I substance him erstwhile successful a while. I'm not 1 that hangs connected the coattails of my players. I privation him well. We substance possibly doubly a year, but if I texted him close present and he's not practicing, he'd reply maine successful 30 seconds."

Cincinnati Bengals backmost Joe Burrow (9) runs disconnected the tract pursuing an NFL shot crippled against the Baltimore Ravens successful Cincinnati, Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023.  (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

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Burrow’s Cincinnati Bengals were officially eliminated from playoff contention Sunday aft getting unopen retired astatine location by the Baltimore Ravens. Burrow was 25-for-39 for 225 yards and 2 interceptions successful the 24-0 loss.

Fox News' Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.

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