A Giants first-round bust somehow received All-Pro votes, while New York’s biggest star earned his place among the NFL’s elite
One Giants player earned All-Pro honors for the first time in his career, while one of his teammates somehow almost snuck in as well.
The Associated Press just released the All-Pro team from the 2025 season. To no major surprise, there was only one New York Giants player who made the squad.
Giants star pass rusher Brian Burns was recognized as a second-team All-Pro for his stellar season, among an impactful group of defenders. Surprisingly, Deonte Banks, of all players, received votes as a special teamer.
Brian Burns earns All-Pro honors
This marks the first time in Burns’ promising career that he has been named an All-Pro. In his seven seasons in the league, he’s earned Pro Bowl honors three times, including this year in 2025.
In 2025, Burns produced the best season of his career, totalling 16.0 sacks on the season. His production would have been good enough to lead the NFL in most years, but he finished in second behind a record-breaking 23-sack season from Myles Garrett. Burns also finished the year with 14 quarterback hits, 24 hurries, and 39 tackles.
The other pass rushers that beat out Burns for first-team honors include Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns, Will Anderson Jr. of the Houston Texans, and Micah Parsons of the Green Bay Packers. Those who made the second team with him include Danielle Hunter of the Houston Texans and Aidan Hutchinson of the Detroit Lions.
Burns’ success signals a bright future for the Giants
Burns’ growth into one of the best pass rushers in the NFL comes with perfect timing for the Giants’ defense reaching its potential. His success this year can easily be attributed to the unit of players he’s playing alongside Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux. While Thibodeaux is now more of a known commodity, Carter is just scratching the surface.
While 2025 was disappointing, I’ve emphasized many times recently that the right head-coaching hire could propel the Giants toward becoming next year’s Chicago Bears or New England Patriots. One could argue that the core of talent on the team is better than what both of those squads had in 2024. The Patriots had only one All-Pro in 2024, Christian Gonzalez, and the Bears had none.
The ultimate key to success is the rest of the squad elevating around the proven stars. Can Carter become a double-digit sack guy? Can young offensive up-and-comers like Malik Nabers, Jaxson Dart, and Wan’Dale Robinson take a leap as well? If the potential is actualized, becoming a playoff team is on the horizon.
Deonte Banks received All-Pro votes … seriously
Lastly, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post shared earlier that cornerback Banks also received votes on the All-Pro team as a second-team kick returner. For how frustrating Banks has been at cornerback, this is a hilarious anecdote for the season.
The former first-round pick regressed after his first year in the league and struggled mightily to maintain a starting role on defense. Towards the end of the year, he began receiving opportunities to return kickoffs, finishing with 622 yards and one touchdown.
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