Giants OLB Brian Burns Explains Why He’s “A Little Pissed Off”

Giants fans will love the reason, too.

Jul 26, 2024; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants linebacker Brian Burns (0) high-fives New York Giants defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches (93) during training camp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. / Lucas Boland-USA TODAY Sports

New York Giants outside linebacker Brian Burns admitted after Sunday’s practice that he’s “a little pissed off.”

But lest anyone think that the bloom is off the rose for the Giants’ big-ticket offseason acquisition, it’s not. Burns, ever the competitor, was speaking about his ongoing, on-the-field battle against left tackle Andrew Thomas, one that has been a “must-see” through four training camp practices.

“It's been a constant battle between me and him,” Burns said after practice. I embrace the opportunity. Ever since he got back—he wasn't practicing at the beginning of OTAs—I've been on his side. We're definitely going to get each other better.”

Usually, when there are no pads involved, as has been the case over the last four practices, the advantage goes to the defense. But that hasn’t always been the case in this battle, as Thomas, one of the best blindside protectors in the game, has held his own and then some against the man the Giants are counting on to inject a little more firepower into their pass rush.

• RELATED: Brian Burns: The Good, the Great, and the Ugly

Burns, for his part, was stewing, if just a bit, over losing more of his battles Sunday against Thomas than he won.

“Today, he kind of got me a little pissed off. He edged me out today,” he said. “So, tomorrow, we got a battle. We got to get that back, for sure.”

Head coach Brian Daboll has been enjoying watching two of his top players go at it against each other in practice.

"Man, that's a fun matchup to watch," he said. "Those guys go at it. They make each other better. They're both really good football players, so I think it helps us as a team."

Overall, Burns has been enjoying his new role for his new team.  “I haven't been dropping a lot, so (laughs) that looks good to me,” he said when asked for his early impressions about how he’s been deployed in the defense. 

“As long as we keep those numbers to a minimum, I'm fine. I'd rather be going forward.”

Burns is also embracing the challenge put on the defensive front, of which he’ll be a part, to hunt the quarterback, vowing that the pass rush, which was victimized a little too much by the quarterbacks scrambling out of trouble on Sunday, will get better.

“I take it seriously,” he said regarding getting after the quarterback. “With that being said, today we had too many quarterback scrambles. I don't think we kept a tight enough pocket today. 

“It's still early. We're still learning how to rush with each other, so it's going to take time. But, day by day, we're going to get better. I take it seriously, and that puts a lot on our group, and I think we've got the guys to do it.”

Burns is excited to put the pads on for Monday’s and Tuesday’s practices.

“The first practice with pads, that’s definitely the next step,” he said. “That's a big step for this whole team to see where everybody's at, physically, and their mentality.

“It's going to tell a lot about our defense, how we come out and go against our offense. It's definitely a big step, and I'm going to put a lot of emphasis on that to our defense.”

---

• Follow and like us on Facebook.
• Submit your questions for our mailbag.
• Follow on Instagram.
• Check out the Giants Country YouTube Channel.