Story by
What is turf toe? Explaining the injury, recovery time for Joe Burrow injury
- Story by
- What is turf toe? Explaining the injury, recovery time for Joe Burrow injury
For an injury with such a goofy name, turf toe sure has made its impact on the NFL.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow will miss several months after he undergoes surgery on his toe following a turf toe injury, according to reports.
Advertisement
But what is turf toe? And is it really that serious?
Turf toe is a semi-common injury in the NFL. It's common enough that Burrow is not the only active starting quarterback dealing with the ailment.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy also suffered turf toe in Week 1, which kept him out of his team's Week 2 game and could keep him out even longer. But his variant is less severe than Burrow's, which is what gives him a more brief timeline for a return.
JOE BURROW INJURY: How long is Bengals star QB out? Latest update, timeline
What is turf toe?
The medical term for the injury is metatarsophalangeal joint sprain , or a partial to complete tearing of ligaments surrounding where the big toe meets the rest of the foot. When a person lifts their heel off the ground while their toe remains planted, it hyperextends the joint and puts increased pressure on the ligaments.
Advertisement
The "turf toe" nomenclature comes from the tendency for football players to sustain the injury on artificial turf surfaces, which tend to have less "give" than grass. As they use their toes often to make sudden movements to enter a sprint or make a cut while running, they become susceptible to spraining the ligaments in their foot.
Turf toe recovery time
Burrow's variant of turf toe is a Grade 3 sprain, meaning a complete tear in the ligaments around his big toe. A sprain of that degree requires surgery to repair, which will reportedly knock Burrow out for three months as he recovers.
A lesser-grade version of the injury, like Purdy's, might have allowed Burrow to avoid surgery and a return date of only a few weeks. Instead, he'll miss significant time once again.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is turf toe? What to know about NFL injury
