Sam Burgess is thoroughly enjoying his life retired from professional rugby league, but brother George wouldn't be surprised to see him lace up the boots again.

Burgess' career came to an abrupt end at the conclusion of the 2019 NRL season, the South Sydney legend succumbing to a persistent shoulder issue that essentially forced him into medical retirement.

The 31-year-old has since adopted a coaching role at the Rabbitohs, where he's working under Wayne Bennett alongside fellow retired club greats Greg Inglis and John Sutton.

But George, who left the Rabbitohs himself in the off-season to join Wigan, hinted it may not be the last time we see the former South Sydney skipper on the field.

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"Maybe not in a few months, maybe in three years he might get the itch again, we'll see," Burgess said.

"It couldn't surprise me, but I would doubt it highly.

"He's enjoying it [retirement], his body's thanking him for the rest I think.

"He's just enjoying his next chapter as a retired player and I think he'll do some cool things."

While Burgess enjoys his time away from pre-season training, the Rabbitohs remain without a big name forward to replace their former skipper just over a month out from the new season.

They've secured the signature of hard-nosed Titans forward Jai Arrow on a four-year deal from 2021, but the Redfern-based club had hoped they could seal an early release for the Origin star.

However, that plan took a major blow over the weekend, when it was revealed Gold Coast captain Ryan James had suffered a reoccurrence to an ACL injury from last season.

Titans head of culture and performance Mal Meninga told Sydney Morning Herald it was "highly unlikely" that Arrow would be released a year early.

“We’re down with troops in the middle with Ryan going,” said Meninga.

“It will take a fair effort to get Jai Arrow out of our club this year. He’s probably our best middle player. At this stage, losing Jai, with Ryan going down, it’s highly unlikely we will release him.”