Carolina Panthers star edge rusher Brian Burns is entering the final year of his rookie contract. The two-time Pro Bowler and impending free agent rightfully wants to be paid like one of the best edge guys in the NFL.
With just over a week to go before Carolina opens the regular season against the Atlanta Falcons, Burns is away from the team.
First-year head coach Frank Reich talked about the situation on Thursday, refusing to rule out that it’s due to Burns’ contract.
“I’ll just refer that to Brian,” Reich told reporters if Burns’ absence was due to his contract situation. “It’s impossible for me to have more respect than I do for Brian. It’s his personal matter. And secondly, as a matter of policy, it’s not my role to talk about contracts, even if that’s what it was.”
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Brian Burns stats (2022): 63 tackles (17 for loss), 22 QB hits, 12.5 sacks
Over the course of his first four NFL seasons, the Florida State product has racked up 77 QB hits and 38 sacks. Burns has earned two consecutive Pro Bowl nods, too.
Burns is set to earn $16.01 million in the fifth-year option on his rookie contract in 2023. On a per-year basis, that makes him the 18th highest-paid edge guy in the NFL.
But it’s about a lot more than this season. As we’re seeing with fellow star defenders Nick Bosa and Chris Jones during their current holdouts, long-term security and guaranteed money is the name of the game. As of right now, Brian Burns does not have that.