Aaron Rodgers knows what it’s like to play through injuries.
In fact, the New York Jets quarterback is currently hampered with a torn Achilles, which has effectively ruled him out for the remainder of the 2023 season. While Rodgers is not going to play through an Achilles injury—though the Jets putting the 39-year-old out on crutches may be a better option than Zach Wilson at this point—he played through thumb and rib injuries in his final season in Green Bay.
And he’s seen a similar thing out of Joe Burrow.
The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback strained his calf in the preseason and while still not at 100%, reaggravated the injury in a Week 2 loss to the Ravens. While his status was up in the air all week leading up to this past Monday night’s game, he fought through his calf injury to lead the Bengals to their first win of the season.
And for that, Rodgers heaped praise on Burrow.
Rodgers, making his weekly appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, shared to the public his message for Burrow.
"I give Joe Burrow a lot of credit because not many people realize how much pain he was in..
I texted him that's what great competitors do..
They show up and play through the pain and don't make it a big deal" ~ @AaronRodgers12 #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/2B3InsD2kH
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 26, 2023
“I give Joe a lot of credit, because you know he’s dealing with the calf injury, and him and I had a conversation this week,” said Rodgers. “Just for him to tough it out. I don’t know if people realize how much pain, limited mobility he was in, but for him to go out there [Monday] night and to make enough plays to win, like I texted him, ‘That’s what great competitors do, is they show up and play through the pain and don’t make it a big deal.’
“Only him and a few people in his inner circle know hurt [he was] and I give him a lot of credit for going out there. They were 0-2. It was an important game for them to win and that was a big win.”
It’s certainly high praise from Rodgers and just goes to show how respected Burrow is amongst his peers in the NFL.
