Many people throughout the United States struggle with addiction, a crippling affliction that strikes the richest and poorest alike, from those destitute on the street to…Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow. Fortunately, Burrow is handling his addiction rather well.
“I’m addicted to getting better”, the Bengals quarterback declared in his first public comments of the offseason. Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury last year and threw to teammates for the first time on Monday. He explained how he has attacked rehab no matter his mood or motivation at the time.
“That part has never really been a problem for me”, he said. “I’ve always been able to get up and go to work and make sure that I’m gonna be where I need to be to perform my best. My ‘why’ is always just continuing that drive for greatness. Continuing that drive every day to improve”.
The first-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Burrow had generally improved each season, until last year. He struggled through a lower-body injury during the early portions of the 2023 season before injuring his wrist. He did look more himself during a four-game winning streak preceding the wrist injury, but he knows he has work to do. Which is where the addiction comes in handy. There and in the weight room, apparently, as he says he’s bulked up.
“There’s nothing like the feeling of getting better, because that makes the day-to-day really worth it”, Burrow explained. “Once you start to see the results of the work that you’re putting in, there’s nothing like that. That’s really what I’m striving for every day”.
That’s a universal feeling to which anybody can relate, I would hope. There is an addictive quality inherent to seeing the fruits of your labor. You know that you are moving forward and that the work you are doing is accomplishing something.
Even as I write this, I know that my article is hastening toward completion. Then I’ll have a finished product and it will go live for you to read. I know that when I write I get to communicate something to our readership, or at least a segment. And for Joe Burrow, each step forward he takes in his rehab is an addictive rush of endorphins.
Because he knows that before too long those steps that he took, that work he put in, gets him back to doing what he loves. And what makes him a lot of money. So, sure, Joe Burrow battles this addiction every day, but in his case there’s a positive side.
Burrow has long had a reputation for his work ethic, which has only continued in recent years. He became an instant leader for the Bengals when they drafted him, beyond just his stature. And much of his leadership stems from the example that he sets, as is usually the case with great quarterbacks.
He has applied those same principles to his rehab process, which is why he’s already throwing to live targets. Burrow is well on track to take the field for the Bengals in the season opener, and if he stays healthy all season, the Bengals will be a very different, and more dangerous team than last season.
