That Something Special
However, before we get on to that, it is worth appreciating the impact that Burns is able to make beyond simply rushing the passer and defending the run. As he has shown an ability to make plays that most edge rushers simply aren’t capable of, such as running down the following screen:
Or dropping into coverage after pressing the tight end off the line:
Additionally, while he did get a rather fortunate bounce on his long fumble return, he probably could have kept running for a long while before getting caught:
Finally, in terms of his ability to make an impact beyond the constraints of normal defensive ends, his ability to make an impact on special teams, as evidenced by his two punt blocks so far this season, is something special:
“He sees [it as a] way he can help impact the game and he’s done that twice,” said Ron Rivera about Burns on special teams. “Those can be game-changers, those can be things that really do help and blocking the punt helped lead to an opportunity for us. It’s one of those things where seeing a guy wanting to be a part of it – and the other guys seeing him want to be a part of it – it helps the team as a whole.”
However, given all this impact he has already been able to make through six games, how could he get even better?
The Ongoing Concern
I had two concerns with Burns the prospect – don’t get me wrong, he was my seventh overall prospect – the first was his limitations as a run defender, and the second was his tendency to premeditate his rush tactics, rather than being reactive to what the tackle was offering him. Through six weeks, this is still the biggest opportunity for improvement with Burns.
For a player like Burns, and there really aren’t that many players in this group, every pass rush should start with the speed rush and the threat thereof. Every single snap, the tackle is going to be terrified of Burns simply running around him – and Burns should focus on doing either that or taking advantage of the breakdowns in technique that result from the tackle making sure that doesn’t happen. The advantage of the way the Panthers look to rotate defensive linemen is that Burns should be able to go full speed every snap he is on the field.
What this means is that every time you see Burns not quite hitting full speed, it is hard to excuse as anything other than either fatigue or rushing without any clear plan of how he is going to win that particular snap:
There are also some times where he needs to have a better awareness of the situation so that he is left chasing the snap. A good example of this is the following play, where the offense moves a tight end to his side of the line, and while he nearly gets yet another QB hit on the play with a really nice bit of hand usage, he almost appear to be caught off-guard by the tight end block, rather than recognizing that this is the first thing he has to eliminate on the play:
He could also do with developing a greater understanding of how different designed rushes are meant to generate pressure, such as on the following stunt:
The aim of this rush design is that the tackle is absorbed by trying to block the edge rusher and so when the inside rusher loops around he is then left unblocked – either that or the edge rusher is then left as a free rusher. The issue with what Burns does here is that he fails to actually engage the tackle and mauls Marpet, meaning that when the inside rusher loops around, the tackle is perfectly able to make the block, and he then collides not with the outside shoulder of the guard but with the center of his frame. To improve, he should focus on making sure he forces the tackle to get hands on him and then look to push through the gap between the two blockers rather than worrying too much about engaging the guard. This could best be done by taking an extra step before cutting inside.
This isn’t a major issue, but Burns is already good enough – six games into his career – that it’s the little things that he now needs to be focusing on.
However, the biggest issue with Burns’ pass rush is the way he attempts to set up inside moves, something that he flashed in college and which he has the talent to be excellent at, but which at this stage is still not quite all coming together. The biggest issue is that he doesn’t threaten the outside rush anywhere near enough. The inside move he wants to win with should be a reaction when the tackle commits outside to stop the speed rush, but Burns appears to predetermine that he is going inside and never really uses his speed to make the tackle commit outside:
Let’s us just quickly freeze the play at the point where Burns cuts inside:
The first thing to note is that the tackle is in pretty good position, his weight is fairly evenly distributed and he hasn’t driven wide of Burns around the edge. At this point, there is really no opportunity for Burns to win inside, as by not really stressing the outside rush, he has failed to force the tackle to really sacrifice his technique. The other thing worth noting here is how there is still an opportunity for Burns to exploit, he just needs to be better at adapting mid-rush.
While the tackle has a good weight distribution laterally, if you look at the angle of his knees, all his weight is behind his feet and so he would likely have really struggled to counter a bull rush by Burns, even if Burns isn’t the most powerful of edge rushers.
Another example of Burns needing to do a better job of recognizing what is in front of him is the following play, where the Bucs keep the running back in to protect against the speed rush:
Again, here Burns needs to do a better job of really stressing the speed rush, as this will either force the tackle to commit outside and so open up the rushing lane inside or will leave him isolated against the running back.
It should be stressed at this point that these are both relatively high level things for a defensive end – the fact that Burns isn’t perfect on every snap is to be expected of a rookie. Again, for a rookie edge rusher to be ranked in the top ten in QB hits through six weeks and in the top fifteen in sacks is a remarkable achievement, it’s just that Burns is, and I am absolutely not joking and not exaggerating, just scratching the surface of what he can be as a player.
The future is bright.
