It looks like the Carolina Panthers are highly unlikely to move star pass rush Brian Burns before the NFL trade deadline due to rumors that he wants to be paid like one of the top defensive players in the league in 2024.
The 2023 trade deadline is just days away and Week 8 will be huge in helping many teams decide if they are sellers or buyers before 4 PM ET on Oct. 31. One team that many around the league expect to be major sellers next week, whether they win or lose on Sunday, is the Carolina Panthers.
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After seven weeks, the Panthers are the only winless team on the NFL standings in head coach Frank Reich’s first season. While they signed some Pro Bowl-level players in the spring and took quarterback Bryce Young with the top overall pick in April, the team has been a notable disappointment this season.
When it comes to what players could be made available before Tuesday afternoon, no one is mentioned more than two-time Pro Bowler Brian Burns. Pass rushers hold a great deal of value, and with Burns in the final year of his contract, there has been a great deal of speculation that he could be a player that helps a playoff pretender become a Super Bowl contender.
- Brian Burns stats (2023): 20 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 9 QB hits
Carolina Panthers stadium: Bank of America Stadium
However, a new report from Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio gives the impression that it might prove too difficult for Carolina to move the 25-year-old for one major reason.
“The problem, as it relates to a potential trade, is his financial demand for a new deal,” Florio wrote. “This buzz in some circles is that it’s upward of $30 million per year.”
Related: Carolina Panthers asking price for Brian Burns trade expected to be much lower than in 2022
Burns is a player that Carolina is not going to give away, and is deserving of a premium return following a career year in 2022 where he posted 12.5 sacks. However, for other teams to give up a serious return they would like to feel confident they can re-sign him in the offseason.
But his rumored asking price is not one many teams will be able to afford in 2024 even if they were willing to acquiesce to his demands.
