With over 100 seasons to their name, 2024 may have been the worst in New York Giants' history. New York needed upgrades all around the field to improve upon their disastrous 2024, either by new faces or old.
One player who is primed for a step up is two-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Brian Burns. Burns was acquired by the Giants last offseason, and had a solid first year in New York. In his first season for the Giants, Burns had 8.5 sacks, 71 tackles, 17 for loss, and 18 quarterback hits.
The Giants have a lot of big names who can get to the quarterback, between tackle Dexter Lawrence, bounce-back candidate Kayvon Thibodeaux, and rookie Abdul Carter. Burns has seemed to have gotten lost in the headlines amidst the acquisition of Carter.
Perhaps that's a good thing. Truthfully, opposing offenses will be terrified of Lawrence and Carter. With the pressure those two bring, Burns' sack numbers could skyrocket. NFL.com's Marc Ross agrees with the sentiment, predicting that Burns is in for perhaps his best season yet with the arrival of Carter.
"But I guarantee the two-time Pro Bowler's production will vastly increase with Abdul Carter's arrival," Ross wrote. "The No. 3 overall draft pick is the most talented pass pusher to enter the league since Micah Parsons in 2021, and Carter's impact on the Giants defense is likely to be similar to the one the four-time Pro Bowler has made in Dallas."
Burns had had just one double-digit sack season, in 2022, his last Pro Bowl year, where he had 12.5. With Carter and Lawrence on the field most of the time and Thibodeaux in the mix, the Giants' pass rush is going to be lethal, and Burns could be seeing much more favorable coverages from his side of the field, leading to a career year.
"Burns will surely face his share of double-teams, but he should regularly feast when presented with one-on-one matchups, leading me to think a double-digit sack and Pro Bowl campaign are on tap for the seventh-year pro." Wrote Ross.
The pass rush will be the signature of this Giants team. It should be one of the NFL's best. The rest of the roster will need to get up to snuff.