New York Giants edge rusher Brian Burns joined an elite group on Sunday when he sacked Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson in the first quarter.
It was Burns’ eighth sack of the season, making him the eighth player in NFL history to record 7.5 or more sacks in each of their first six seasons to begin their career.
It didn’t come without a price, however. Burns nearly got taken out shortly after by the Ravens’ massive offensive tackle Daniel Faalele on a blindside hit.
Brian Burns got absolutely destroyed by Daniel Faalele on that field-reversing scrambled. Looks like he's OK on the sideline but he never saw that block coming from a 6-8, 380-pounder.
— Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) December 15, 2024
Burns said he was “beat up a bit” after the game but the hit didn’t end his day. The Pro Bowler was able to return a few plays later to finish the game but make no mistake, he got his bell rung.
“Yeah, he lined me up. I was focused on Lamar as he was trying to get outside. And yeah, he kind of just blindsided me,” Burns told reporters.
“I feel like if he wanted to probably hit me harder because I wasn’t looking. But still felt it. Yeah. Football.”
The Giants’ pride took quite a hit as well after they lost their ninth straight game. Burns knows what losing is coming from the Carolina Panthers, who drafted him in the first round back in 2019.
During his five seasons in Carolina, the Panthers never won more than seven games in a season and recorded double-digit losses every year.
“I don’t know,” Burns said when asked what the feeling of the locker room was after the Giants suffered through the 35-14 loss to Baltimore. “It really wasn’t too much talking after this game. Probably get a better feel on Monday.”
Well, Monday is here and things don’t look much better.
