Thaddeus Moss Helped Joe Burrow Get Comfortable During Return From Torn ACL

The second-year tight end played a role in Burrow's recovery.

Author:
James Rapien
Publish date:
Sep 9, 2021 10:31 AM EDT

CINCINNATI — Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is comfortable and confident going into Sunday's season opener against the Vikings, but that wasn't always the case.

The 24-year-old struggled at the start of training camp. The slow start was understandable, considering he was making his way back from a torn left ACL and MCL.

Burrow is back, but he didn't do it alone. His teammates, trainers and coaches helped him along the way.

That includes second-year tight end Thaddeus Moss, who was Burrow's teammate for two seasons at LSU.

"He just asked me why I wasn’t speaking up like I used to," Burrow said. "I was like, ‘You know what, you’re right.’ Why am I not doing that? I realized that I kind of… when I’m more vocal, it kind of gets me into a rhythm and I stop thinking about what I have to do and I start thinking about what everybody else has to do. It reverts back to muscle memory. I think that played a part in me starting to play really well."

Moss wasn't the only one that noticed Burrow wasn't his usual self in late July and early August. Ja'Marr Chase also noticed a difference in the star quarterback.

"I definitely noticed once when we got here, he wasn’t so vocal about the offense yet. And Thad told him," Chase said. "It’s just Joe being himself. He finally got his confidence back. He’s back out there screaming, yelling, playing (like) himself. So I believe Joe has his full confidence being himself now, that’s the leader we need."

Moss and Burrow are best friends off the field. Having Moss around is good for the team and good for Burrow as the Bengals look to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

Make sure you bookmark AllBengals for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more with the season opener just a few days away!

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