Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
There are times during a game when everything goes silent for Bryan Burnham.
The sure-handed BC Lions slotback doesn’t hear the roar of the crowd, the sound of pounding footsteps, or the crunch of bodies colliding around him. Instead, Burnham’s eyes are locked on the ball being thrown in his direction. His mind shuts out everything other than concentrating on making the catch.
“Everything goes blank,” he explains. “I don’t start hearing stuff until about five or 10 seconds after I make the play. It’s a really high level of concentration.”
It’s Burnham’s ability to stay focused, combined with his body control and strong hands, which has made him another lethal weapon in the Lions’ receiving arsenal.
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Burnham recorded 1,392 receiving yards in a breakout 2016 season, good enough for fourth overall in the league last year (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
In five CFL games this year the 27-year-old has 25 catches for 373 yards and a touchdown. Three of his catches have been for over 30 yards and five have been second-down conversions. Burnham leads the Lions in both being targeted (39 times) and catches. Only Nick Moore has more yards with 376.
Burnham’s skill at thinking the ball into his hands were demonstrated on a couple of highlight-reel catches during the Lions’ wild 45-42 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers last week at BC Place Stadium.
Late in the first quarter he went high into the air along the sidelines to secure a pass with both hands, then landed with both feet in bounds before Winnipeg defensive back Brian Walker could push him out. Early in the fourth quarter, Burnham helped spur the Lions comeback from a 15-point deficit when he caught a ball on his hip for a 45-yard play that would help set up a BC touchdown. Burnham finished the night catching six of the seven passes thrown at him for a season-high 149-yards.
Lions quarterback Travis Lulay said Burnham makes the hard catches look easy.
“You have to be super focused, super competitive and super confident to be able to put yourself in the position to make those plays,” said Lulay. “He’s intense and he wants to win.”
Burnham doesn’t possess the blinding speed of a Chris Rainey. At six-foot-two and 205 pounds he’s big, but doesn’t muscle his way past defenders like Emmanuel Arceneaux.
What Burnham has become very good at is honing his mental game. Like most players he studies film to watch for defensive tendencies. He also spends plenty of time mentally preparing for games, going over in his mind how he will react to certain situations.
“I always kind of picture the game, go through all four quarters, try to go through what plays I think I am going to be able to get open on,” he said. “It’s a lot of mental preparation. When you are sitting at home doing nothing, close your eyes for 10 minutes and just visualize yourself making the play. That’s what I do. You can get better when you’re just lying in bed doing nothing. ”
Marcel Bellefeuille, BC’s receivers coach, said Burnham no longer simply relies on his skill.
“What’s making him very good is his attention to detail now,” said Bellefeuille. “His technique, his alignment, his cuts, how he runs his routes, where he is on the field, understanding defence, how he attacks defenders. That’s what is kind of separating him now.”
Burnham helped lead the Lions to a 45-42 comeback win against the Bombers last week with a game high 149 yards on six catches (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
Bellefeuille preaches the same amount of concentration goes into making a catch in traffic as when a receiver finds himself wide open.
“We talk about catching the ball with our eyes and our chin so our head moves with it,” said Bellefeuille. “If you just focus on the ball and your technique, and where your hands and eyes should be, it doesn’t matter if there is a DB draped on you or if there is no one around you for 10 yards.”
Focusing on the ball helps Burnham eliminate the many distractions of a game.
“There is a lot of different things going around,” he said. “A guy might throw his hand in your face but you really have to buckle down and concentrate. Get the crowd out of your mind, the lights out of your eyes, just focus on that ball. When that ball is in the air that’s all I care about.”
Burnham grew up in Moorsetown, N.J. His father Lem played defensive line for the NFL Philadelphia Eagles. He was also a psychologist for the Eagles, NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and MLB’s Baltimore Orioles.
Burnham played college football at Tulsa. He spent two years as a defensive back before switching to wide receiver in his 2011 junior year. He led the team that year with 54 catches for 850 yards and nine touchdowns. His college career was cut short when he suffered a torn ACL in the third quarter of the first game of the 2012 season.
Burnham joined the Lions in May 2014 and spent the first 11 weeks on the practice roster. In his first CFL game against Toronto he had five catches for 90 yards and a touchdown. He suffered a lacerated spleen one week later and was done for the season.
Last year Burnham played 18 games making 79 catches for 1,392 yards and three touchdowns. His success caused defences to take notice, forcing Burnham to pay more attention to details.
“He’s one of those guys, when he came on the scene last year, people didn’t know a lot about him,” said Bellefeuille. “Now he gets a lot more attention from defences. Now he’s required to take that next level and get better.”
Burnham has become one of BC’s clutch receivers. He will be tested again Friday when the Lions (4-1-0) face the Edmonton Eskimos (4-0-0) in a battle for first place in the CFL West. The Eskimos have allowed just 963 passing yards this year, the least in the CFL.
“They are a good defence,” said Burnham. “They are very opportunistic. They fly around. We have to make sure we are on top of our game and are playing our best.”
