Country Star Luke Combs Blows A Fuse After Panthers Trade Star DE Brian Burns: 'What's Happening!'

Country star Luke Combs is fired up over the Carolina Panthers' decision to trade away star pass rusher Brian Burns to the New York Giants for two measly draft picks.

Combs was beside himself, posting his reaction to the trade, seemingly believing that Carolina got robbed.

For a player of Burns' caliber, a second and fifth-round draft pick seems like a bit of a bargain, compounded by the fact that the Los Angeles Rams offered two firsts and a second for Burns in 2022, which the old Carolina regime declined.

INDIO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 27: Luke Combs performs onstage during the 2019 Stagecoach Festival at Empire Polo Field on April 27, 2019 in Indio, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Stagecoach)

And Combs, joining fellow Panthers fans, hit a boiling point with the Panthers' brain trust after losing Burns and previously trading away running back Christian McCaffrey.

Combs is baffled by the bargain sale in Carolina.

"WHAT ARE WE DOING?!?!?" Combs posted on Monday night. "No first round pick for McCaffrey a few years back and now none for Burns?!?! Are we just fire bombing the whole team here or what? I usually don’t comment on these kinds of things but it’s just becoming slow torture at this point."

Carolina felt some relief by trading Burns, a player who frequently sounded the alarm for a trade. But there's no telling where this team's headed after shipping away a potential foundational piece, ascending as a pass rusher at a young age (25). Or how this team can improve upon a 2-15 campaign with its current personnel.

The Panthers are all in on building around Bryce Young. Carolina is bereft of elite players on offense, and now they lack studs on defense, so it's a double-edged problem for the Panthers.

Carolina also made a surprising pick at head coach after suffering a bad streak of coaching hires. The Panthers chose former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales. 

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - OCTOBER 09: Brian Burns #53 of the Carolina Panthers waits for a timeout to end in the second quarter of the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Bank of America Stadium on October 09, 2022 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Carolina invested in Canales over ascending coordinators like Bobby Slowik in Houston or Ben Johnson in Detroit. Canales spearheads the offense-forward regime in Carolina now that their defensive personnel, led by DC Ejiro Evero, is set up to struggle with its lack of play-makers.

Burns tallied 38.5 sacks in the past four seasons, offering a physicality to the defensive line that hearkened back to Julius Peppers' elite run in Carolina. Now, Burns is out of Carolina and $150 million richer after agreeing to a five-year deal with the New York Giants on Monday.

As Combs knows best, when it rains, it pours.

Follow along on X:@AlejandroAveela