Brian Burns Excited to Be Part of Giants Pass-rushing Triumvirate
Giants opponents will have to “pick their poison” this season.
Outside linebacker Brian Burns is thrilled to be a part of the New York Giants.
Pleasantly surprised, perhaps, but thrilled
So said Burns during Saturday’s “Dexter Lawrence II Charity Softball Game” in Pomona, New York. Burns was among over 100 Giants players, past and present, who helped raise $60,000 for St. Christopher’s.
Burns, acquired via trade with the Carolina Panthers just before the draft and then signed to a five-year contract extension worth $141 million, is excited to be a part of a Giants defensive unit that includes Lawrence and fellow outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux.
According to Burns, that lineup should create some headaches for opposing offensive lines this season.
“Having somebody opposite of me, they’re pretty much going to have to pick their poison on who they’re going to key or slide to,” Burns said of Lawrence and Thibodeaux.
“With Dex demanding so much attention and Kayvon also demanding attention, it’s going to free us up a lot.”
Burns, who has never recorded fewer than 7.5 sacks in a season, hasn’t always benefitted from having additional pass rushers on the field with him that can draw the attention that Lawerence and Thibodeaux figure to draw.
That obviously won’t be the case with the Giants. Burns will have Lawrence, a two-time Pro Bowler and holder of 21 career sacks and 79 career hits over his five-year career, who last season saw his 8.4 pass-rush productivity rate tie him for fifth with Buffalo’s Ed Olivier among interior defensive linemen with at least 300 pass-rush snaps.
Thibodeaux, who last season became the first Giants defender to record double-digit sacks (11.5) since former defensive lineman Leonard Williams finished with 11.5 sacks in 2020.
As a rookie, Thibodeaux placed fourth in the Associated Press voting for Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022. But he did place on the 2022 NFL All-Rookie Team and earned NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance in a Week 15 win over the Washington Commanders.
The Giants have been getting their first look at the new pass-rushing trio of Burns, Thibodeaux, and Lawrence during Phase 2 of the annual off-season program. Phase 3, which allows the offense and defense to compete, begins Monday.
