Bryan Burnham climbs the latter to make one of his six catches in a victory over Winnipeg July 21st. Photo: Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
Things do indeed happen for a reason. That is what Bryan Burnham is preaching after a productive offseason brought about no less than seven NFL workouts…. But no pen was put to paper.
After his career season, many observers pegged him for a roster spot down south. Burnham now insists he is where he wants to be: on his way to another memorable campaign in orange.
“Honestly, the NFL is in the rear view mirror,” said Burnham on the practice field Monday.
“I’m here in BC, and I’m here to stay. I’m here to play football and I want to solidify my name as one of the great receivers to come through this league. Playing with guys like Manny(Arceneaux), Nick (Moore), Chris (Williams), Travis Lulay and Jeremiah Johnson, the list goes on. I want to be great with those guys.”
As the BC Lions surpass the six game mark of their season, one third of the way done if you prefer math, there is plenty to be excited about. Travis Lulay has proved he is still a more than viable option at quarterback. Jeremiah Johnson has showed no signs of slowing down with a heavier workload. Solomon Elimimian is still the same warrior he was before Adam Bighill departed for New Orleans.
And then there is Burnham. The University of Tulsa product has perhaps quietly put together a decent start to 2017, hauling in 27 catches for 415 yards. Add it all up and he is almost on pace to match his magical 2016 season where he finished with 1,392 yards and garnered plenty of NFL interest before re-signing with the Lions in February.
Despite his comments, it still begs the question: did not landing a contract south of the border indeed fuel him even more? These players thrive off competition, and a big part of that is proving their doubters and detractors wrong. Every once in awhile they get reminded that nothing is indeed handed to them. There are plenty of factors in play, when you consider roster needs, salary cap implications and the type of college program you played for.
Bryan Burnham makes a play during 45-42 victory over Winnipeg on July 21st, 2017. Photo Credit: Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
“It’s definitely motivation and showing those guys what they missed out on. I’m not a pushover; I’m no one hit wonder. I’ll come out here and do it again this year. It’s definitely motivation, but it’s more about wanting to win with these group of guys.”
Bryan Burnham
Receivers coach Marcel Bellefeuille has seen many signs of improvement in his second season with Burnham.
“He’s been outstanding and has really stepped up his game last year,” explained Bellefeuille.
“Even though his pace may be the same, defences are paying more attention to him and putting more people over him; which makes it even more difficult. He’s understanding the game at a different level now.”
Burnham’s lone touchdown this season is a play his buddies back in New Jersey, and plenty more football mad Americans, are still talking about: a one-handed catch as he was falling with Tiger-Cats defender Keon Lyn draped all over him. You may recall the pass was actually ruled incomplete, meaning the officials probably couldn’t believe he made the play.
“I’m still hearing from them,” added Burnham of the continent-wide attention.
“It’s an awesome feeling to do something like that. You don’t think about it, but there are kids messaging me on social media, saying they’re my biggest fans and how I inspired them to go out and play football. It’s a special feeling when you don’t know one play can impact the lives of kids around the world.”
The fact his touchdown was shown on ESPN highlight loops might have also caused a few NFL types to scratch their heads. Burnham insists the number one positive from that is the fact our great league continues to showcase itself to hardcore football fans south of the line.
“I think that there is a lot of people sitting at home, late at night watching the top ten. They see this guy make a catch and might decide to check it out or watch a game next time they’re flipping channels. We have plenty of great players up here, it’s a great league and its definitely special to get some recognition down there.”
Burnham’s heroics and Duron Carter’s leaping touchdown catch against Toronto last week should go down as the top two CFL plays this season, and perhaps beyond.
Dating back to 2015, Carter and the Roughriders have lost six straight meetings to the Lions. Having acrobatic playmakers on both sidelines will add even more intrigue to this big Western Division matchup. How much will the two talk about their respective highlight-reel grabs before kickoff? If it’s up to Burnham, the less the better.
“I’m sure there will be something like that, but at the same time it doesn’t mean much now. We have to go out and compete against each other, and it’s all about the win.”
“Even though his pace may be the same, defences are paying more attention to him and putting more people over him; which makes it even more difficult. He’s understanding the game at a different level now.”
Being at that other level also involves becoming better as a teammate and mentor to some of those younger receivers like Shaq Johnson and Danny Vandervoort.
“He’s gone from that learning phase from last year to teaching. What you can teach you’re going to retain 90-95 percent of. As soon as you start teaching the techniques to the younger players, you become a better player for teaching it, ” added Bellefeuille.
Perhaps another big reason for the bounce in Burnham’s step is the fact he will soon be a married man. Along with his tour of NFL workouts, the sure-handed receiver proposed to long-time girlfriend Aubrey Wong in the offseason. They will officially tie the knot next April in Tulsa, where they both attended college.
“She has done an amazing job (with the wedding planning). There is a few things I have to handle, like my tux and stuff like that. She has been awesome through this whole process. It’s been fun. As much as football means to me, it doesn’t last forever. When you have a woman in your life that really cares about you, that’s more important than anything. You can’t take that for granted.”
Aubrey may indeed be his greatest catch yet. You can bet he’s not finished making big ones on the field.
Tuesday Practice Report
The number one storyline in day one of preparation for Saskatchewan was receiver Chris Williams. The speedster is eligible to come on the active roster this week, but it remains to be seen what kind of juggling Wally Buono and the coaching staff will do. At any rate, Bellefeuille is looking forward to seeing what number 80 can bring to the offence and his receiving corps.
“We have a lot of guys to work with once Chris gets healthy and cleared to play,” said the receivers coach.
“He’ll bring some more speed and he’s someone who can do stuff after the catch. You think of him as a small
er guy, but he actually plays really big and has a great catch radius, He’ll be another tool that the offence can have it its disposal.”
Once cleared to play, he should also help the struggling kick return game. This will be a fascinating story to follow as the week progresses.
Injury Watch: Buono continues to be encouraged by Jonathon Jennings‘ throwing progress, but isn’t quite ready to hand the reigns back after Travis Lulay did a bulk of the work with the first team offence.
“He(Jennings) threw in Edmonton during warm up, threw yesterday with a bunch of guys we had here, so I think he’s getting more and more comfortable, which is important,” said Buono.
“The big thing right now is strength. When we think the strength is there, we’ll resume. I am going to very safe to say Travis is going to be our starter.”
Manny Arceneaux took the day off to rest his shoulder and leg issues. Signs point to him once again taking a reduced load in practice after he suited up for the entire game in Edmonton. Defensive lineman DeQuin Evans rested some bumps and bruises. Defensive back Keynan Parker and Centre Jas Dhillon, both on the six-game injured list, did some light drills on their own in uniform. Parker had a similar shoulder injury in 2008 where he had screws put in. Neither were displaced in his recent injury from July 21st. He expects to make a speedy recovery. Dhillon spent some time working on his snapping. He suffered a bicep injury in practice last month.
TJ Lee was watching, and in good spirits, after suffering a dislocated elbow in the loss at Edmonton. He will not require surgery and hopes to return sometime next month. With bye week at the end of August, he won’t be rushed.
Bake’s Take
Plenty of online debate has ensued over what catch was better: Burnham or Carter? Naturally the Lions fans are going with their guy and the always passionate green supporters say “Duron all the way.” The best part? People are engaging in some (mostly) healthy debate, and the fact both of these players are helping give the league some great exposure is a great thing. A case can be made for both plays, but the fact Burnham could barely see what he was doing should give him the upper hand.
Our friends at TSN have even created a poll to go along with it.
Link:Who did it better? Burnham or Carter?
Duron is the son of eight-time Pro Bowl selection Cris Carter and it has been neat to see him develop his career up north.
Matt Baker: mbaker@bclions.com