The Carolina Panthers have officially placed the tag on star defensive player (linebacker) Brian Burns, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The tag number for this season will be $24 million.
He is 25 years old and was the 16th overall selection (first-round pick) in the 2019 NFL Draft from Florida State. Carolina was 2-15 a season ago and Burns was also mentioned in trade rumors but they never traded him. Brian Burns recorded 50 tackles, eight sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and two pass deflections.
Had Carolina not tagged him, he would have had a lot of suitors on the free-agent market. One of the teams that could have made a serious push for him was the Detroit Lions. They made it to the NFC Championship Game a season ago and they need help on defense.Detroit also has a lot of money to spend this offseason. Maybe they will try and make a trade for him from Carolina anyway before the 2024 season begins.
Fans React to the Carolina Panthers Franchise Tagging Brian Burns
A lot of fans on Twitter were not happy that the Panthers franchise tagged Burns. Here is what some of them had to say about Burns going back to Carolina:
Brian Burns back in Carolina!
The 6-foot 5, 250-pound linebacker had 7.5 sacks during his rookie season in 2019 before tallying 9 in 2020 & 2021. He then exploded for 12.5 sacks in the 2022.
In 2023, he had 8 sacks and was 11th in ESPN’s pass rush win rate, at 21%.
— Free Agency Frosty (@FrostyTalksFB) March 5, 2024
#KeepPounding pic.twitter.com/a6R3Vugbf5
— Jason Beaucage (@JasonBeaucage) March 5, 2024
Not even close to worth a 24 mill cap hit for one year but Panthers do Panther things
— Jordan J MacGeever (@j_macgeever) March 5, 2024
A lot of people have more negative reactions than positive reactions to this move. They feel like there is no sense of direction with the franchise despite bringing one of its best defensive players back. So far in Burns’s career with the Panthers, he has recorded 246 tackles, 46 sacks, eight forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and two pass deflections.