Giants Now: ESPN names Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux among top pass rush duos

ESPN names Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux among top pass rush duos

ESPN Analytics recently put together a list of the top 10 pass rushing duos in the NFL this upcoming season based on sack projections.

Coming in at No. 7 on the list was the Giants’ outside linebacker pair of Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux.

Prior to the Panthers placing the franchise tag on him, Burns was set to be one of the top free agents on the market this offseason. He registered eight sacks, 16 tackles for loss, 18 quarterback hits, one forced fumble and two passes defensed across 16 games last season.

Burns’ 46 career sacks are tied for 12th in the NFL since he entered the league in 2019, while his 59 tackles for loss are tied for sixth-most in that span. He also has eight forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries to go with his 95 quarterback hits.

“The model is projecting Burns’ first season with the Giants to result in a sack increase after he was dealt from Carolina this past offseason,” wrote ESPN’s Seth Walder. “Burns has been a steady performer at a level just below the elite pass rushers, maxing out at 12.5 sacks in 2022. He managed only eight last season, though playing on a bad Panthers team that was rarely ahead contributed to the lower total.”

Burns has never recorded fewer than 7.5 sacks and 16 quarterback hits in a season, which he did as a rookie. He posted career-highs in sacks (12.5) and quarterback hits (22) in 2022, when he earned his second consecutive Pro Bowl nod.

He is one of only eight players in NFL history to record at least 7.5 sacks in each of their first five seasons.

Thibodeaux recored four sacks and six tackles for loss across 14 games as a rookie, which helped him finish fourth in the Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.

The outside linebacker then took a big step in 2023, increasing those numbers to 11.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss in addition to three forced fumbles and four passes defensed while playing all 17 games.

ESPN has Burns finishing ninth overall in their projections with 10.2 sacks, while Thibodeaux is projected for 7.6 sacks. Additionally, ESPN has Azeez Ojulari, the team’s No. 3 edge rusher, projected for 6.6 sacks, which has him ranked within ESPN’s top 50.