I've seen quite a few people questioning who exactly the burned man was, though it was explained to me in the game, so I'm surprised that no one else knows.

When Caesar went down for surgery, his body guard started talking to me. Basically, he explains that the burned man was the former commander who led the legion to its defeat at the first battle for hoover dam. Caesar had him burned.

so thats who it is, I destroyed the legion camp, so I wouldn't have known

He was also the first companion you could get in Van Buren. So speculation exists that he's still alive, even among the players.

He was one of the founders of Caesar's Legion, in fact. The first Legate. But for his failure to hold the dam, he was burned and tossed into the Grand Canyon. He's become a ghost story among slaves and more superstitious Legionnaires who believe he will come back seeking revenge.

I hope someone makes a mod with the Burned Man as an enemy

Yeah I find the story with him interesting and in the game the slaves are spreading rumors about him being alive and Caesar was sending out search parties for him. It would be neat if they included him in DLC. I wonder if he's still for the Legion? It would be strange considering what Caesar did to him.