Brian Burns has been in the news today after reports emerged of him being signed by the New York Giants in a record deal. As reported by the Athletic, New York is taking Burns from the Panthers in exchange for the No. 39 overall pick in the NFL Draft next month and a fifth-round pick in 2025. The deal apparently will make Burns the fourth highest-paid NFL defensive player, thanks to a deal worth up to $150 million. Brian’s newly signed contract surely brought joy to many, especially his elder brother Stanley McClover.
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For those who do not know, McClover is a former Panthers DE and is currently a die-hard Panthers fan working as a hype man for the team at all levels. The DE, unlike his younger brother Burns, had a mediocre college career. This led him to get signed by the Panthers in the seventh round of the draft as the 237th overall pick. McClover was super grateful to be picked by the Panthers. Unfortunately, he couldn’t translate this into his on-field performances. In his rookie season of 2006, McClover played just two games and was inactive for 14 contests.
His 2007 season saw him start in 11 games but his performances were far from desirable. He only made 12 tackles, one sack, and 2 QB hurries in that season, according to Wikipedia. This dismal performance led him to get released by the Panthers. He was soon signed by the Texans, but luck wasn’t on his side, as he spent the majority of his time in Houston on the reserved/injured list, leading to the club releasing him in 2009, marking the end of his NFL career.
In hindsight, McClover’s career turned out to be far from ideal. Stanley realized this and decided to give back to the Panthers, who gave him the most, and train his brother Burns to be the best version of himself. As fate would have it, he succeeded.
Stanley Always Knew That Brian Burns Would Be Signed by the Carolina Panthers
Brian Burns has been a top-class linebacker since his college days. He was always confident in his abilities and thus decided to forgo his final year of college and enter the NFL draft. The move paid dividends as the Carolina Panthers drafted him in the first round as the 16th overall pick. Since then, the former Florida State star has become an incredible asset for Carolina, even earning two Pro Bowl nods.
Interestingly, McClover revealed in a YouTube video by the Panthers, that he was confident of Burns getting signed by his former team. Stanley acknowledged that he had a far from desirable career, but Brian getting picked by the Panthers was the best day of his life. Hence, he made it his mission to help his brother become a much better version of him. He was driven by the hope of seeing Burns shine and make the Panthers proud.
Thus, when Carolina picked Burns, he must not have been surprised because he had been internalizing this over the years. Moreover, it was a win for the Panthers, as McClover felt they were getting the best DNA in the draft.
“When I got drafted by Carolina, that was the best day of my life. Things didn’t work how I wanted them to, but I always promised myself that you know my little brother; I’m gonna make him better than me,” Stanley said. “And for Carolina to come get him at the draft with me; I mean, god kind of wrote no story better than this and they’re getting the best DNA in the draft and we’re going to go hard this year.”
All said and done, it’s truly beautiful to see McClover work selflessly for his brother’s success. While we don’t know what his thoughts are about Burns leaving Carolina, he must surely be proud of his brother for becoming the fourth highest-paid defensive player in the NFL.
