Steelers hope Burns has turned the corner
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin walks between players as they warm up Friday before the start of practice at Latrobe High School.
Staff members pull a tarp over one of the practice fields Friday at Saint Vincent College. The afternoon practice session was moved to Latrobe High School’s turf field because of inclement weather.
LATROBE – Antonio Brown jogged over to the sideline to share talk with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger midway through the Steelers’ first full training camp practice Friday.
“He’s getting better,” Roethlisberger said to Brown, who agreed.
The he to which Roethlisberger was referring is second-year cornerback Artie Burns, the Steelers’ 2016 first-round draft pick.
Burns’ skillset was on display in a practice that had to be moved to Latrobe High School’s turf football field because of heavy rains that drenched the area.
As the young cornerback did throughout the offseason workouts, Burns followed Brown all over the football field Friday and made things tough on one of the NFL’s top wide receivers. When Brown went deep, there was Burns running with him stride for stride to break up a pass. When he ran a post pattern, Burns broke on the ball, getting a hand on it with some help from second-year safety Sean Davis, who knocked Brown to the ground.
It’s all part of the master plan.
The Steelers figure that if Burns can cover Brown, who has surpassed 100 receptions in each of the past four seasons, then he can hold up well against anyone on their schedule.
It’s far different from when they challenged Burns last season.
After missing a large portion of training camp and the preseason, Burns broke into the starting lineup in early November at Baltimore. He promptly was beaten by wide receiver Mike Wallace for a 95-yard touchdown. A few weeks earlier in a loss at Miami, Burns struggled with his tackling.
By season’s end, Burns had 64 tackles, 13 pass defenses and a team-high three interceptions.
“Early on, Artie had trouble getting on the field because of injury,” defensive backs coach Carnell Lake said. “Once he got on the field, every team is going to attack rookies and they attacked him. He learned some situations, the Baltimore situation, for example. He had a little trouble in that game. He had a little trouble in the Miami game. After that, he took it to heart and started progressing.
“That’s what we wanted to see. We wanted to see a guy who we drafted in the first round get into the lineup. Teams are going to try to drown you and see if you can sink or swim. He survived. This year, I want to see him drown some players on the other side. That’s where we are with him.”
The Steelers believe Burns (6-0, 197) has the size and speed to run with and cover many of the league’s best receivers.
Now that Burns has a full season of experience, the Steelers believe he has the necessary confidence.
“I can pretty much do whatever,” he said. “Whatever they want me to do, I’ve got to do it.”
This year, that will likely include locking up in man-to-man coverage with A.J. Green of Cincinnati and Jordy Nelson of Green Bay.
To that point, the Steelers brought former cornerback Ike Taylor to camp this year as a coaching intern. One of Taylor’s tasks is to work with Burns on footwork to better be able to stick to receivers.
The Steelers want to play more man-to-man defense this season instead of relying primarily on zones. Burns’ progression could be a big part of that.
“I didn’t prepare for (more) man,” Burns said. “I prepared to do whatever the defense takes on.
“I check my game every day and look over what I did on the field to make it better. I rep what I messed up on and try to get better every day.”
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said safety Daimion Stafford, signed in the offseason as a free agent, is contemplating retirement. Stafford, a starter for the Titans last season, was placed on the Reserve/Did Not Report list Thursday. … Rookie receiver Ju-Ju Smith-Shuster got a scare Friday when he turned his ankle. He returned to practice after sitting out for a while. … The Steelers will practice at 2:55 p.m. Saturday. The session is open to the public. … Tomlin is expected to sign a contract extension soon. He currently has two years remaining on his contract.