Brian Burns (born April 23, 1998) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University (FSU) located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I, prima ...

and was selected by the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

in the first round of the

2019 NFL draft The 2019 NFL draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. The first round was held ...

Early life

Burns attended American Heritage School, where he played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

. Over his junior and senior seasons, he had 135 tackles and 28 sacks combined and helped his team win state titles. Burns played in the 2016

U.S. Army All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl (currently branded as the Navy All-American Bowl for sponsorship reasons) is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is p ...

. He committed to

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

to play

College career

As a freshman at Florida State in 2016, Burns played in all 13 games and led all freshman in the country with 8.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2017, he started all 13 games and had 48 tackles and 4.5 sacks. As a junior in 2018, Burns started all 12 games, recording 52 tackles and 10 sacks. After the season, Burns decided to forgo his senior year and enter the

College statistics

Professional career

Carolina Panthers

Burns was drafted by the

in the first round with the 16th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. In Week 5 against the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

, Burns recorded a sack on

Gardner Minshew Gardner Flint Minshew II (born May 16, 1996) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He began his college football career with the Northwest Mississipp ...

and returned a forced fumble for a touchdown in the 34–27 win. As a rookie, he appeared in 16 games and started five. He finished with 7.5 sacks, 25 total tackles, and one forced fumble. In Week 3 of the 2020 season against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

, Burns recorded his first sack of the season on

Justin Herbert Justin Patrick Herbert (born March 10, 1998) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oregon Ducks football, Orego ...

, a strip sack that was recovered by the Panthers, during the 21–16 win. In Week 7 against the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

, Burns recorded a strip sack on

Drew Brees Drew Christopher Brees (; born January 15, 1979) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. A member of the New Orleans Saints for most of his career, Brees is sec ...

that was recovered by the Panthers during the 27–24 loss. In Week 11 against the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

, Burns recorded two sacks on

Matthew Stafford John Matthew Stafford (born February 7, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs football, Georg ...

during a shutout win and was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week. He appeared in 15 games and started 14 in the 2020 season. He finished with nine sacks, 58 total tackles, four passes defended, and three forced fumbles. On December 27, 2021, Burns was placed on the Panthers

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

reserve list. In the 2021 season, he appeared in all 17 games and started 16. He finished with nine sacks, 50 total tackles, four passes defended, and two forced fumbles. He earned Pro Bowl honors for the 2021 season. He was ranked 76th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2022. The Panthers picked up the fifth-year option on Burns's contract on April 26, 2022. In Week 12 against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

, Burns had two sacks on

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He has primarily played for the Seattle Seahawks. With the Sea ...

, a forced fumble, and one pass deflection, earning him NFC Defensive Player of The Week. He finished the 2022 season with 12.5 sacks, 63 total tackles, three passes defended, and one forced fumble in 16 games and starts. He earned Pro Bowl honors for the 2022 season. He was ranked 54th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2023. Burns opened the 2023 season at Atlanta with seven tackles and two sacks. It marked his third career multi-sack game. He moved up the Panthers all-time sack list in Week 5 at Detroit, making his 42nd career sack and passing Kevin Greene for fifth all-time in Panthers history. In the 2023 season, Burns finished with eight sacks, 50 total tackles, two passes defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in 16 games. He was ranked 55th by his fellow players on the

NFL Top 100 Players of 2024 The ''NFL Top 100'' Players of 2024 is the fourteenth season in the '' NFL Top 100.'' It premiered on July 22, 2024, and concluded on August 2, 2024. Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill Tyreek Hill (born March 1, 1994) is an American ...

. On March 5, 2024, the Panthers placed the franchise tag on Burns.

New York Giants

On March 13, 2024, the Panthers traded Burns with the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

' 2024 fifth-round pick to the

in exchange for second-round and fifth-round picks in the

2024 NFL draft The 2024 NFL draft was the 89th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit on April 25–27, 2024. The draft had an attendanc ...

. The Giants then signed Burns to a five-year, $141 million contract with $87.5 million guaranteed.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Personal life

Burns's older brother,

Stanley McClover Stanley McClover (born December 16, 1984) is a former American football defensive end. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round of the 2006 NFL draft. He played college football at Auburn. Early life McClover was a star def ...

, was drafted by the

in the seventh round of the

2006 NFL draft The 2006 NFL draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with additional coverage offe ...

. He is a fan of the

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics ...

character

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...

References

External links

*
College statistics
at

Sports Reference Sports Reference, LLC is an American sports statistics company that operates databases of several sports. They include Pro Football Reference for American football, Baseball Reference for baseball, Basketball Reference for basketball, Hockey ...

New York Giants bioFlorida State Seminoles bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Brian Living people 1998 births Players of American football from Fort Lauderdale, Florida American football defensive ends American football linebackers Florida State Seminoles football players Carolina Panthers players New York Giants players National Conference Pro Bowl players American Heritage School (Florida) alumni