There are few defensive linemen in the NFL having a better year than Brian Burns, which is why the news that came out of New York Giants camp Wednesday was so welcome.
Giants coach Brian Daboll announced Burns would not be going on injured reserve even though he missed practice Wednesday due to injury.
With nine sacks, Burns leads the NFL and has already surpassed his 2024 total (8.5) and is just 3.5 sacks shy of his single-season career high. He also leads the league in tackles for loss (12) and is tied for third on the Giants in passes defended (4) while playing in each of the first seven games.
The Giants (2-5) will take on the rival Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.
Brian Burns Is Nursing A Foot Injury
Lost amid Burns’ postgame questioning of defensive coordinator Shane Bowen’s playcalling was the fact he left Empower Field at Mile High in a walking boot after sustaining a foot injury during the Giants’ 33-32 loss to the Denver Broncos .
Burns joined Jevon Holland, Paulson Adebo and Chauncey Golston as players who sat out the first practice ahead of their second meeting with the Eagles. Burns told Jordan Ranaan of ESPN that the walking boot was “precautionary” which was confirmed by Daboll.
“No,” Daboll said when asked if any of the players that missed practice would be going on injured reserve.
The Giants Could Not Afford To Lose Brian Burns
The Giants have already lost arguably their most important offensive player, Malik Nabers. Though rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart has energized the fan base during his four-week tenure as Giants starting quarterback, he has put himself in harm’s way time after time — and Russell Wilson hasn’t exactly been an inspiring option.
So the Giants defense needs to take the lead if they are going to get back into the playoff hunt after their surprisingly competitive start.
The Giants’ four-headed defensive-line monster often gets lumped together, but Burns could be an NFL Defensive Player of the Year candidate based on his ability to wreck games.
Burns has both recorded sacks and harassed rival quarterbacks. He has more sacks than the rest of the team combined (5) and leads the Giants with 19 hurries, five quarterback hits and is second to Abdul Carter in QB knockdowns (5) while playing in each of the Giants’ seven games.
Burns has three multi-sack games and only been held sackless against the New Orleans Saints and has four in his past two games — including his two-sack performance against the Eagles in New York’s 34-17 upset win in Week 6.
Though they have had some devastating near-misses, the Giants have not won at Lincoln Financial Field since 2013 and have not swept the season series from the Eagles since the magical year of 2007.
Of course one of their wins that year was cemented by Osi Umenyiora’s six-sack performance against the Eagles — in New York’s dominant 16-3 win at then-Giants Stadium on Sept. 30.
After knocking Philadelphia off its feet at home, on a short week, in their 17-point win at MetLife Stadium on Oct. 9, the Giants will need Burns to be his best game-wrecking self — doing his best Umenyiora imitation — if they are going to defeat the Eagles again Sunday.
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