Five years ago, the Carolina Panthers rolled the dice on a thin, yet extremely athletic pass rusher out of Florida State named Brian Burns. They projected him to be one of the best in the league once he filled out his frame and got a little stronger and they hit the nail right on the head with that gut feeling.
Burns racked up 95 QB hits, 59 tackles for loss, and 46 sacks in his five years with the Panthers, earning back-to-back Pro Bowl selections.
It wasn't an easy decision for the Panthers' front office to move off a player as talented and as young as Burns, but it was something they had to do to help free up money to build the offensive line. Plus, the two sides had been in contract talks for well over a year and never appeared close on meeting in the middle to strike a deal.
The Panther sent Burns to the New York Giants in exchange for second and fifth round picks along with a swap of fifth round picks in 2025.
Friday, Burns made a post on Instagram thanking everyone in Carolina.
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