The Eagles have recruited a total of eight midfielders - including ruckman Nic Naitanui - inside the top 25 at the last three national drafts, with four of those being first-round selections.
The strategy has brought significant short-term pain for the last-placed club - including a heavy defeat to cross-town rival Fremantle at the weekend - but comparing the fledgling group to Geelong's midfield in the early 2000s has given Burns confidence.
"You can't have your cake and eat it too in terms of developing a list or a team to be successful down the track and not have a lot of players the same age coming through at the same time," Burns told afl.com.au.
"With that Geelong team, there would have been a period where they would have had six or seven blokes, mainly midfielders, coming through together, and they probably didn't play finals there.
"Then once they got up and running they’ve been one of the best AFL teams going around.
"If you look at our team right now, all of the players we've had in the midfield we think are our future down the track, so you're going to have to wear a bit of pain with it."
Geelong built its now dominant running division at the 1999 and 2001 national drafts, recruiting five midfielders who have gone on to be 150-game premiership players, sharing eight all-Australian jumpers between them.
Burns says his youngsters compare well when judged against the all-conquering Cats in their first three AFL seasons.
Gary Ablett played 55 games and averaged 13 possessions, while Cameron Ling (44 and 14), James Kelly (46 and 15), Jimmy Bartel (40 and 16) and Joel Corey (39 and 14) had similar numbers in their first three seasons.
Brad Ebert has played 50 games and averaged 17 possessions, while Chris Masten (39 and 18), Scott Selwood (39 and 14) and second-year midfielder Tom Swift (21 and 17) match the Cats’ figures.
Burns acknowledged disposal efficiency had been an issue with his group, but said they now had the opportunity to build chemistry.
"They've played games where they all sat back afterwards and said to each other, 'This didn't work, this works better', and they know each other's games inside out," he said.
Masten, 21, agrees that having a core group of young midfielders learning the game together will help the Eagles as they fight their way back up the ladder.
"I think definitely that is a massive part of being a good side and a good midfield inside a side," he said.
"We've got a long way to go in terms of our skills, but getting our hands on the football has been good for the boys and as we get older together and get used to each other we're going to be a force."
Burns, who is in his second season as midfield coach after a 264-game career with Collingwood, said he was enjoying the challenge.
"I'm pretty hard on them at times, but I'm pretty confident in them as well," he said.
"They're the first ones in here, the last ones to leave and they always want to do extra sessions. You've got to pull them back.
"We're on a journey at the moment and it would be very good to be here for quite a while and see them come out the other end."
