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Comeback season for Terrell Burgess went like this: A pick six to open Los Angeles Rams training camp, then his 2020 NFL Defensive Player of the Year teammate plus head coach leaving camp energized about his future at the end of camp.
Back in November, the 22-year-old Burgess left the Rams on a medical cart following a devastating ankle injury where his left foot got caught in the SoFi Stadium grass and bended awkwardly. Before his injury, Burgess surrendered four receptions on seven targets plus tallied six solo tackles according to Pro Football Focus.
Many Ram followers – from team beat reporters to the fans who flocked to UC Irvine’s Crawford Field – wondered how healthy “T.B” would be.
Well, Burgess looked every bit like a player with a reconstructed ankle: Reclaiming his ball-hawking side.
And that side Burgess recaptured left Aaron Donald impressed, plus energized, about what Burgess can bring to the league’s best defense from last year.
“We saw what he was doing last year when he was healthy, when he was playing,” Donald said on July 28 to reporters. “To see him back healthy again, out there doing the same things he was doing before he got injured, I’m excited about it. He’s going to continue to get better. He’s still a young guy with a lot of potential. He’s hungry.”
‘It’s Still a Work in Progress’
Going back to day one of camp, Burgess was clearly the tone setter on defense.
And he disrupted a potential “9 to 1” connection between Matthew Stafford and DeSean Jackson in the end zone.
A few days later, Burgess showed how valuable his presence is without needing to make a beeline for the football – providing the blanketing coverage to assist Nick Scott on a takeaway as described here.
Burgess is making plays and a difference in his first football action since that week seven injury against the Chicago Bears. Yet, while Donald likes Burgess’s comeback story, the Utah Ute standout is trying to avoid tooting his own horn.
“It’s still a work in progress, but I’m excited to be back out here,” Burgess said Tuesday to the L.A. Media. “Obviously it was a long offseason, but it feels good, feels way better.”
Burgess mainly used the 10 open practices to reinsert himself in the defensive lineup while sharing reps with Scott, Taylor Rapp and the other Ram safeties. But he’s managed to show his Swiss Army knife side to his coaches including McVay, who is excited himself about the possibility of watching Burgess line up in the defense.
“If he’s able to have that versatile skill set that we anticipate, it makes it a little bit less predictable with what you want to do with Jalen (Ramsey),” McVay said.
And even with a deep crop of safeties who are near similar in versatility, Burgess sees it more as a good thing for L.A.
“I think it’s a good problem to have right now,” Burgess told Rams reporters J.B. Long and D’Marco Farr on Monday. “We have a lot of guys who can play different spots. I’m excited to see the way competition goes going into the season. I think the more reps you take, the easier it gets in regards to how the play comes to you and executing the right way. All you can do is add value wherever you can. I tell the coaches all the time: Anywhere they want me to play, I’ll play.”
Burgess Will Return to the Place Where He Got Hurt
Two important games coming up for Burgess: The September 12 season opener against the Bears and the Saturday preseason contest against the Chargers.
What do both have in common? Both games will be held on the field where his 2020 season ended.
However, Burgess isn’t thinking about the past. He’s thinking about lining up with the rest of his defenders.
“I think it’s motivating because, as much as it sucks to get hurt, I think I went out the best way I could in that case, and I’m excited to be able to get back out there and go with the team,” Burgess said.
Another reason behind his positive energy? When he steps back onto the field, there will be no more cardboard cutouts or an empty SoFi Stadium, which has given the 5-foot-11, 202-pounder a renewed perspective on fan attendance.
“I’m very excited. It’s weird, you never really think that you play for fans until there’s not fans in the stands. I’m excited to see the fans and it’ll be a good weekend,” Burgess told Long and Farr.
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