Carolina recently announced that Brian Burns underwent ankle surgery but expects to be back for training camp. Burns had missed the final game of last season with an ankle sprain, but months later, it was discovered that what started as a hairline fracture became more severe and required surgery. The Panthers are downplaying the nature of the injury, but it was significant enough to go under the knife and required surgery. This sequence of events resembles Cam Newton’s ankle injury and subsequent surgery performed in 2014.
Like Burns, Newton suffered an ankle injury the previous season and initially opted for rehab. Although Newton’s injury differed in nature, like Burns, the Panthers projected he would be back for training camp. Interestingly, the same surgeon that performed Burns’s procedure, Richard Andrews, was the Panthers’ team doctor in 2014 and performed Newton’s surgery.
Newton had surgery to repair ligament damage in his ankle in March of 2014, which caused him to miss the entire off-season program and a portion of training camp. As John Holler of Scout.com observed, waiting too long to opt for surgery may have been Newton’s downfall. “The timeline they put out for return is always the most optimistic,” he noted. “Rarely does the rehab go as fast as they think. They may be ready to play, but returning to form takes more time than the timeline suggests.” Newton ultimately returned for the start of the regular season, but his recovery was a gradual process, and it took some time for him to return to his pre-injury form.
Like with Newton, the timing of Burns surgery is a little concerning. The timeline for “return” and the timeline for “return to form; may be different — and training camp may be a bit optimistic. It was for Cam Newton, anyway.
To make matters worse, this is a contract year for Burns, highlighting the risks of playing the final years of a rookie contract. While players are well compensated in the 5th-year option, it isn’t an assurance of their long-term financial stability. I’m sure Burns would have preferred to work out a contract extension before the surgery. However, he’ll be under some pressure to get back on the field as quickly as possible so he doesn’t lose any of the value he has built as he’s emerged as Carolina’s top defensive player over the past few years. Not only is he the only real star they have on defense, but he’s also arguably the best player on the team at this point and certainly the best pass-rusher.
With all the excitement that has surrounded Carolina and its new staff, there’s also a lot of change. Moving to a 3-4 defensive scheme will be an adjustment for players, and Burns is a guy they need to lead this defense in this transition. Questions loom about how players like Yetur Gross-Matos or Amare Barno will fit into this new scheme. It’s an uncertainty that’s been largely masked by the surrounding excitement of a new coaching staff and the #1 pick in the NFL draft. It’s hard to think that this transition won’t come with some growing pains. In fact, many Panthers fans thought it was imperative to add a free-agent pass rusher before the news of Burns’s surgery. Now adding a proven veteran commodity at edge seems paramount. Heck, the Panthers may need to be thinking about adding two at this point.
Burns’s injury and its parallels to Newton’s 2014 injury are disconcerting. The Panthers are heading into the 2023 season with a lot of optimism. We had a lot of optimism a decade ago after going 12-4. The Panthers’ defense was dominant, and the Panthers’ offense looked poised to improve. Success in the NFL is fleeting, and what was a strength just a season ago can easily become a liability the following year. A decade later, Carolina Panthers are optimistic for different reasons. Our current optimism stems from the thought of a shiny new quarterback coached by a shiny new staff. Carolina has to be better this year than they have been over the past few years with Matt Rhule, right? Last year’s offensive line was the best it’s been since 2015. The team has some talent that should be nourished by a seasoned NFL staff, and they get a quarterback that should be the franchise. Just like a decade ago, optimism and opportunity can be sidelined by injury. The Panthers were optimistic about Newton’s timeline for return a decade ago, just like they are about Burns’s return this July. The parallels between Burns’ injury and Cam Newton’s injury in 2014, however, serve as a stark reminder that optimism and hope often are dampened by a sobering dose of reality.
I’d like to hear from you about the timeline of Burns’s return. Can the Panthers find the success we are anticipating if Burns isn’t a full go in Week 1? How important do you feel he is to the Panthers’ 2023 overall success?
By Tony Dunn aka @Cat_Chronicles