Burgess Placed on Injured Reserve, Season Over?

With injuries to veterans Mike Edwards, Damar Hamlin and rookie Cole Bishop threatening to derail their progress at safety, the Buffalo Bills were hoping that a former Super Bowl champ would help to add depth and experience to the position.

However, Terrell Burgess’ season appears to be over before it began.

Burgess, on Sunday, was placed on injured reserve amid a series of roster transactions made by the team. The 25-year-old sustained a hamstring injury during Wednesday's practice. There are now rumors of an injury settlement and release being reached with Buffalo.

Considering their injury woes at the position, Burgess was expected to help mitigate Buffalo’s problems in the defensive backfield.

Still, Bills’ injury expert Dr. Kyle Trimble had previously projected that injuries would not “hold Burgess back” in his quest to earn a roster spot in 2024.

Though he has appeared in 43 regular-season games throughout his career, Burgess missed 11 as a rookie with the Los Angeles Rams in 2020 due to a fractured left ankle. Additionally, the Utah product was waived with a failed physical designation for an undisclosed injury last May after signing a futures deal with the New York Giants. Burgess later signed with the Washington Commanders later that month and spent the remainder of the season with the team either on the practice squad or active roster.

Still, Trimble assured Bills Mafia that the nature of Burgess’ injuries did not inherently carry a cause for concern.

“There isn’t much to Burgess’s injury history outside of the ankle fracture back in 2020.” Trimble wrote. “The undisclosed injury is notable but considering he was waived in early May and later passed a physical at the end of the month indicated that his injury was minor. Neither injury appears concerning long term as he begins his stint with the Buffalo Bills.”

In 43 career regular-season games, Burgess has logged 25 total tackles and one pass breakup.

Save for his inaugural season, Burgess has been relatively durable. During the Rams run to a Super Bowl title in 2021, Burgess played in 16 games during the regular season and started two of the Rams' four playoff games. He was waived by the Rams in November 2022, yet signed with the New York Giants just two days later. After playing in only one game for New York, he subsequently signed with Washington. He appeared in 12 games and made one start for the Commanders last season.