Tennessee Titans wide receiver Treylon Burks has drawn some early concerns since being drafted in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Burks couldn’t stay on the practice field in rookie minicamp because of asthma and apparent conditioning issues — and those conditioning issues are nothing new for the wideout — and then Burks was unavailable during the two open sessions of mandatory minicamp for an undisclosed reason.
But a new report from ESPN’s Dianna Russini suggests Burks is getting his issue under control. Russini says she’s hearing Burks has lost weight, is in shape, and has shown “so much growth already.”
“I’ve heard he’s in shape, I’ve heard he’s lost weight. I’ve heard there’s been so much growth already. And this is from an organization that doesn’t like to share,” Russini said on The Athletic Football Show.
Former Titans tight end Ben Troupe was a guest on “JMart and Ramon” on 104.5 The Zone recently and talked about Burks’ issue.
“Treylon Burks has got to understand, man they’re getting you ready to play every snap,” Troupe said. “You’re trying to be the No. 1 receiver, you don’t come out that much if you come out at all. So Treylon has got to understand — right, wrong, or indifferent — that he’s going to have a lot of scrutiny because they’re going to think he’s the reason A.J. Brown is in Philly, even if that’s not the case.”
We’d disagree with the notion anyone thinks Brown is in Philly because of Burks. The real reason is the Titans couldn’t come to an agreement on a contract with Brown, thus forcing their hand to draft Burks.
Troupe went on to admit that he was probably in worse shape than Burks when he joined the team in 2004, while also noting that there is a big difference between football shape and professional football shape.
“I appreciate the fact that there weren’t social media like there is now… I was probably in worse shape than Treylon Burks,” Troupe admitted. “I had to learn this — football shape versus professional football shape is really, really different.”
Despite a rocky start, Burks will have ample opportunity to right the ship in training camp, which begins on July 27, and then in the preseason. If he can do so, Burks will have the major role we envisioned out of the gate. If not, Burks’ playing time will be limited at best.
