CINCINNATI -- Cincinnati Bengals star linebacker Vontaze Burfict is back under concussion protocol for the second straight week after a re-evaluation of the injury that forced him to leave Sunday's win over the Falcons showed he exhibited concussion-like symptoms.
Originally, he had been listed with a stinger, a nerve-related issue that is common among football players.
Like concussions, stingers can have varying levels of severity. Burfict's apparently was so extreme that trainers advised he be taken out of last week's game.
Burfict left with about 3:20 remaining in the third quarter when he and Bengals outside linebacker Emmanuel Lamur collided trying to tap down a scrambling Matt Ryan.
It wasn't the first time Burfict left the ballgame. Just after the second-quarter two-minute warning, he came out of the game after being penalized for hands to the face on an Atlanta offensive lineman. It wasn't clear what happened to him after that play, but he was seen going immediately to the bench, where he sat alone for the remainder of the drive.
Burfict went under the concussion protocol last week after he left the season opener in the first half as he dove into Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco on a sack attempt. It seemed he may have originally hurt himself a few plays before that, though, when he landed on his head at the end of another tackle. Burfict had been on the protocol up until Sunday morning, when team trainers and independent doctors cleared him entering the game against Atlanta.
It's possible the Bengals will sideline Burfict this week altogether with their bye coming up next week. He also could be joined on the sideline by Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Green, who left last week's game with a toe injury.