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Giants Now: ESPN's most impactful offseason moves

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Brian Burns, Malik Nabers land on ESPN's list of most impactful offseason moves

ESPN's Mike Clay recently released his list of the top 50 most impactful offseason signings, trades, and draft acquisitions across the NFL.

Two of general manager Joe Schoen's moves landed inside the top 10, starting with the selection of wide receiver Malik Nabers coming in at No. 9.

"The Giants have been looking for a No. 1 wide receiver for years, and they should finally have one after using the No. 6 pick of April's draft on Nabers," wrote Clay. "He's coming off a big season for LSU in which he had 1,569 receiving yards on 89 receptions. History says Nabers will push for nearly one-fourth of New York's targets in his first season based on his draft slot. Expect a big showing in the box score."

In addition to his receptions and receiving yards, Nabers also registered the most 10+ yard plays, 20+ yard plays and 30+ yard plays last year. He finished his collegiate career as LSU's all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards, and was named Unanimous All-American and first-team All-SEC for his standout 2023 campaign.

The rookie wide receiver, who just turned 21 on Sunday, has been making big plays on a daily basis during training camp.

"His mentality is the mentality you need to have," head coach Brian Daboll told the media last week. "He's humble, but he works extremely hard. We've moved him in a lot of places. I'd say for a young receiver, a lot of times you put [them] at one spot. So, it's a credit to him and the amount of work that he puts in. He knows he's got a long way to go. It's just a couple practices, but obviously we thought he was a good player where we selected him. I told you I love the person. I love his competitive desire, his will, his grit, if you will."

Finishing right behind the selection of Nabers at No. 10 on ESPN's list was Schoen's biggest move of the offseason - the trade for outside linebacker Brian Burns.

"The former Panther has 46 sacks in five seasons and joins Dexter Lawrence II and Kayvon Thibodeaux on what could be a dominant line," said Clay.

The Giants acquired the 6-foot-5, 250-pound linebacker in a trade with the Panthers during the first week of free agency. Burns was set to be one of the top free agents on the market this offseason before Carolina placed the franchise tag on him.

The 26-year-old registered eight sacks, 16 tackles for loss, 18 quarterback hits, one forced fumble and two passes defensed across 16 games last season.

Burns' 46 career sacks are tied for 12th in the NFL since he entered the league in 2019, while his 59 tackles for loss are tied for sixth-most in that span. He also has eight forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries to go with his 95 quarterback hits.

Burns has never recorded fewer than 7.5 sacks and 16 quarterback hits in a season, which he did as a rookie. He posted career-highs in sacks (12.5) and quarterback hits (22) in 2022, when he earned his second consecutive Pro Bowl nod.

He is one of only eight players in NFL history to record at least 7.5 sacks in each of their first five seasons.

According to Pro Football Focus, the trio of Burns, Lawrence and Thibodeaux combined for 148 quarterback pressures in 2023.

View photos of every move made by the Giants during the 2024 cycle.

View photos from Thursday's practice at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center.

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