It's no question that the 2025 season will be a critical one for Joe Schoen after the disastrous 2024 campaign for the New York Giants, a season where two players Schoen refused to pay ended up having career years with their new teams.
When Schoen decided not to pay star running back Saquon Barkley the money he absolutely deserved, the former second-overall pick signed a three-year deal with the Giants' NFC East rival, the Philadelphia Eagles. The nightmare became a reality when John Mara most notably said on NFL’s Hard Knocks that he’d have a tough time sleeping at night if Barkley went to Philly.
In his first season as an Eagle, Barkley became just the ninth running back in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards, finishing with 2,005 yards in 16 games, along with 13 touchdowns. He also came just 101 yards short of breaking Eric Dickerson’s all-time single-season rushing record.
While Barkley's departure still stings—especially as he and the Eagles are now just one win away from a Super Bowl appearance—Big Blue also saw star safety Xavier McKinney leave in free agency for the Green Bay Packers on a four-year deal. In his first season as a Packer, McKinney recorded a career-high seven interceptions, earning All-Pro honors.
Despite the outrage from Giants fans over Schoen letting the team’s two best players walk in free agency, only to see them excel elsewhere, New York’s massive trade for star pass rusher Brian Burns might be the only reason Schoen still has a job.
Could Brian Burns strong first season with the Giants be the sole reason why he still has a job?
In an attempt to brush off the criticism of failing to re-sign both Barkley and McKinney, Schoen made a huge splash last offseason when he traded for Burns from the Carolina Panthers. Burns had already established himself as one of the league's most prolific pass rushers, debuting in 2019 with 7.5 sacks and following that with a combined 38.5 sacks over his next four seasons in Carolina.
Although he recorded just eight sacks in 2023 for the Panthers after posting 12.5 the year prior, his first season in New York was a strong one. Burns finished 2024 with 8.5 sacks, and according to Pro Football Focus, he racked up 61 pressures—the second most of his career and the 13th most in the NFL. Burns also excelled in making negative plays, totaling 42 stops, a career-high. Remarkably, 30 of those stops came in areas where he had previously struggled throughout his career.
Burns has undoubtedly proven to be one of the league's most talented pass rushers. His presence alongside fellow pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux and nose tackle Dexter Lawrence has the potential to create a top-five pass-rushing unit in the NFL.
While the Giants' 2024 season was nothing short of brutal—going 3-14 and enduring a franchise-record ten-game losing streak—Schoen’s decision to add Burns to an already talented defensive front has proven to be a career-saving move. At least for now.