• Please be aware we've switched the forums to their own URL. (again) You'll find the new website address to be www.steelernationforum.com Thanks
  • Please clear your private messages. Your inbox is close to being full.

Burns on film

Coach

Well-known member
Member
Forefather
Joined
Jan 13, 2015
Messages
15,544
Reaction score
3,801
Points
113
Burns on film

http://www.Invalid Link - Check SN ...rtie-burns-2015-miami-pass-targets-games-1-4/

So I watched 4 minutes and 32 seconds of Burns clips of his first 4 games.

Strengths: He's a very good jump ball player, especially when the ball is in the air for a while and the players aren't moving. He'll cut in front of his man, and has the hands and physicality to come down with the football. His coverage is better when he's outside the hash marks in general.

Weaknesses: He gets ripped by slant plays and square outs. His coverage seems off here, perhaps because he loses some speed on turns I saw quite a few completions in incompletions where his man was open. I would not put him in the slot, its just not his game right now, perhaps ever.

His ability to recognize routes needs work.

I also think his zone defense needs a lot of work.

The quality of QB's show in his clip is nothing but average, and in many cases the UM pass rush was making it harder on the QB's.

Sorry guys, While Burns has physical upside but he's going to need a lot of work. He's not close to NFL ready. Unless he greatly improves in camp, he's not going to play much this season unless people ahead of him at corner get hurt.
 
Burns on film

http://www.Invalid Link - Check SN ...rtie-burns-2015-miami-pass-targets-games-1-4/

So I watched 4 minutes and 32 seconds of Burns clips of his first 4 games.

Strengths: He's a very good jump ball player, especially when the ball is in the air for a while and the players aren't moving. He'll cut in front of his man, and has the hands and physicality to come down with the football. His coverage is better when he's outside the hash marks in general.

Weaknesses: He gets ripped by slant plays and square outs. His coverage seems off here, perhaps because he loses some speed on turns I saw quite a few completions in incompletions where his man was open. I would not put him in the slot, its just not his game right now, perhaps ever.

His ability to recognize routes needs work.

I also think his zone defense needs a lot of work.

The quality of QB's show in his clip is nothing but average, and in many cases the UM pass rush was making it harder on the QB's.

Sorry guys, While Burns has physical upside but he's going to need a lot of work. He's not close to NFL ready. Unless he greatly improves in camp, he's not going to play much this season unless people ahead of him at corner get hurt.

Amazing how much you can learn in 4 1/2 minutes. Think of how much time Jon Gruden could save if he had those skills.
 
Amazing how much you can learn in 4 1/2 minutes. Think of how much time Jon Gruden could save if he had those skills.

I saw Burns play live twice, but as they say the tape tells the tale and there are lots of easy snaps to identify #1.

He's at his best when the ball is in the air coming his way. Technique, zone defense, instincts/smarts, and such is not his forte. In some ways, he's a bit similar to Shamko Thomas.
 
I saw Burns play live twice, but as they say the tape tells the tale and there are lots of easy snaps to identify #1.

He's at his best when the ball is in the air coming his way. Technique, zone defense, instincts/smarts, and such is not his forte. In some ways, he's a bit similar to Shamko Thomas.

:BurnsExcellent:

I hope you're wrong, but I don't think you are.
 
I saw Burns play live twice, but as they say the tape tells the tale and there are lots of easy snaps to identify #1.

He's at his best when the ball is in the air coming his way. Technique, zone defense, instincts/smarts, and such is not his forte. In some ways, he's a bit similar to Shamko Thomas.

Did you really compare Burns to Shamarko Thomas? Damn
 
Did you really compare Burns to Shamarko Thomas? Damn

Yes and no. As DB's they both are physical players who can run fast. They both come from difficult childhoods. Neither appears to have a high football IQ. Both had their share of stupid penalties. I get it, one plays corner, the other safety.

Where they differ if Burns has good size and length, while Thomas is short. I did not like the Thomas pick at all because he was very weak in coverage with few plays on the ball. With Burns, plays on the ball when he sees it is not an issue. Being in the proper position, using good technique, and keeping his speed on angles and turns appear to be his biggest areas where improvement it needed for Burns.

Just going on what the film tells me. While the upside says first round grade, the film does not. He really could have used another year in college. Lake has his work cut out for him.
 
Yes and no. As DB's they both are physical players who can run fast. They both come from difficult childhoods. Neither appears to have a high football IQ. Both had their share of stupid penalties. I get it, one plays corner, the other safety.

Where they differ if Burns has good size and length, while Thomas is short. I did not like the Thomas pick at all because he was very weak in coverage with few plays on the ball. With Burns, plays on the ball when he sees it is not an issue. Being in the proper position, using good technique, and keeping his speed on angles and turns appear to be his biggest areas where improvement it needed for Burns.

Just going on what the film tells me. While the upside says first round grade, the film does not. He really could have used another year in college. Lake has his work cut out for him.

The thing that depresses me is BOTH our first two picks are described as "lacking football instincts" by all sources. just having size and speed does not a football player make. Scott Shields has great size and speed, and ended up being a horrid football player, because he couldn't "feel" when to be where. I really hope our 1st two picks are not similar, in that way. Athletic skills do nothing if you are always at the wrong place on the field.
 
The thing that depresses me is BOTH our first two picks are described as "lacking football instincts" by all sources. just having size and speed does not a football player make. Scott Shields has great size and speed, and ended up being a horrid football player, because he couldn't "feel" when to be where. I really hope our 1st two picks are not similar, in that way. Athletic skills do nothing if you are always at the wrong place on the field.

While I don't think Sean Davis is the next Scott Sheilds, you're right. They moved him from corner to safety for a reason and it wasn't height or lack of speed.

The Steelers picked athletes learning how to play football. Both guys are very raw for pass defense. You could say they shined on their athletic ability in college, often vs. medicore type of competition. The NFL is a different game.

Our window to win a super bowl is now. I think these players will need a lot of time to develop to the point where they can be trusted in coverage. This could lead fans to wondering why Tomlin isn't playing them despite fringe players. ahead of them. There is a reason.

In the Burns clips, he was targeted 20 times and gave up 11 completions. However, in some cases, his man was most certainly open and the QB just lacked the arm or accuracy to complete the pass.

NFL QB's I think would have converted many of these plays where the man was open, but the ball thrown just wasn't catchable. Those who say you can't learn things on video clips are off base. If you know what to look for, you can pick out lots of details.

Burns did well vs FAU in 8 target attempts, however, they are not close to Miami's class and got blown out, so this needs to be factored in.

The Nebraska QB, who I would say is just average ripped Burns 137 yards on 8 pass attempts that went Burns way. This to me is worrisome as he only completed 55.2% of his passes. 22TD, 16 ints for the 2015 season.

I'd like to see other posts who don't mind watching clips comment.
 
I was a little concerned that both our 1st two draft picks, the word "raw" was used often to describe them. When Davis was selected the commentator said, "Well, he is raw...VERY raw" in describing him. Coaches, by their very nature, believe their coaching can make the difference in turning raw athletes into players. This is often a foolish and arrogant stance. Football players are NOT merely athletes who just need taught the game. CAN a player be "coached up" to become better players? Of course. That is PART of it. But there is a limit to how much coaching can improve a player. I will repeat my Jimmy Johnson/Big Tuna philosophy on players: Productivity at the previous level is the #1 factor in evaluating a player. Measurables, such as timed speed and size, etc. is below that in hierarchy. But many coaches don't realize this. I met with some positional coaches of an NFL team. At this time, this team happened to have a raw running back, who had super speed and size, but seemingly lacked any running instinct. But the coaches fell in love with his 40 time and size. I asked the RB coach, "Can you teach a running back instincts?" He responded with an emphatic, "Oh yes!" but I was skeptical. (These same coaches all carried Bibles around, and seemed to think if they prayed, God wanted them to win.)

Well, as the season progressed, this player in question never got much better, and would just take hand offs and run straight ahead, going no where, never finding holes and, while he lasted 8 years in the NFL, his career season high was 325 yards rushing, and other than that, he did virtually nothing. You have to have vision and some "feel" in football. No one is so fast or big that they can produce while lacking instincts. Jerome Bettis is a great example of having the instincts to excel. True, he was a load, with nimble feet, but he had a feel on when to cut where. Willie Parker, even with all that blazing speed, was only so so, due to his lack of vision. He didn't completely lack instinct, but his vision and feel wasn't that great.
 
Yes and no. As DB's they both are physical players who can run fast. They both come from difficult childhoods. Neither appears to have a high football IQ. Both had their share of stupid penalties. I get it, one plays corner, the other safety.

Where they differ if Burns has good size and length, while Thomas is short. I did not like the Thomas pick at all because he was very weak in coverage with few plays on the ball. With Burns, plays on the ball when he sees it is not an issue. Being in the proper position, using good technique, and keeping his speed on angles and turns appear to be his biggest areas where improvement it needed for Burns.

Just going on what the film tells me. While the upside says first round grade, the film does not. He really could have used another year in college. Lake has his work cut out for him.

so basically they have nothing in common but you just wanted to compare Burns to a 4th rounder SS.

if he would have stayed one more year in college he would probably have become a top 15 pick so worst case scenario (he doesn't play at all this season) we got a red-shirt top 15 pick of the 2017 draft
 
Didn't they move Davis to CB in college because they were shorthanded there and had someone else who could play S?
Of course not Ark, he was a CB his entire career and the Steelers moved him to safety cause he lacks football instinct. :rolleyes:


I still can't get past 4 minutes and 32 seconds of clips.

Yah, that really tells the tale...
 
I was a little concerned that both our 1st two draft picks, the word "raw" was used often to describe them. When Davis was selected the commentator said, "Well, he is raw...VERY raw" in describing him. Coaches, by their very nature, believe their coaching can make the difference in turning raw athletes into players. This is often a foolish and arrogant stance. Football players are NOT merely athletes who just need taught the game. CAN a player be "coached up" to become better players? Of course. That is PART of it. But there is a limit to how much coaching can improve a player. I will repeat my Jimmy Johnson/Big Tuna philosophy on players: Productivity at the previous level is the #1 factor in evaluating a player. Measurables, such as timed speed and size, etc. is below that in hierarchy. But many coaches don't realize this. I met with some positional coaches of an NFL team. At this time, this team happened to have a raw running back, who had super speed and size, but seemingly lacked any running instinct. But the coaches fell in love with his 40 time and size. I asked the RB coach, "Can you teach a running back instincts?" He responded with an emphatic, "Oh yes!" but I was skeptical. (These same coaches all carried Bibles around, and seemed to think if they prayed, God wanted them to win.)

Well, as the season progressed, this player in question never got much better, and would just take hand offs and run straight ahead, going no where, never finding holes and, while he lasted 8 years in the NFL, his career season high was 325 yards rushing, and other than that, he did virtually nothing. You have to have vision and some "feel" in football. No one is so fast or big that they can produce while lacking instincts. Jerome Bettis is a great example of having the instincts to excel. True, he was a load, with nimble feet, but he had a feel on when to cut where. Willie Parker, even with all that blazing speed, was only so so, due to his lack of vision. He didn't completely lack instinct, but his vision and feel wasn't that great.

well yeah I agree, Davis is a very raw CB
 
I was a little concerned that both our 1st two draft picks, the word "raw" was used often to describe them. When Davis was selected the commentator said, "Well, he is raw...VERY raw" in describing him. Coaches, by their very nature, believe their coaching can make the difference in turning raw athletes into players. This is often a foolish and arrogant stance. Football players are NOT merely athletes who just need taught the game. CAN a player be "coached up" to become better players? Of course. That is PART of it. But there is a limit to how much coaching can improve a player. I will repeat my Jimmy Johnson/Big Tuna philosophy on players: Productivity at the previous level is the #1 factor in evaluating a player. Measurables, such as timed speed and size, etc. is below that in hierarchy. But many coaches don't realize this. I met with some positional coaches of an NFL team. At this time, this team happened to have a raw running back, who had super speed and size, but seemingly lacked any running instinct. But the coaches fell in love with his 40 time and size. I asked the RB coach, "Can you teach a running back instincts?" He responded with an emphatic, "Oh yes!" but I was skeptical. (These same coaches all carried Bibles around, and seemed to think if they prayed, God wanted them to win.)

Well, as the season progressed, this player in question never got much better, and would just take hand offs and run straight ahead, going no where, never finding holes and, while he lasted 8 years in the NFL, his career season high was 325 yards rushing, and other than that, he did virtually nothing. You have to have vision and some "feel" in football. No one is so fast or big that they can produce while lacking instincts. Jerome Bettis is a great example of having the instincts to excel. True, he was a load, with nimble feet, but he had a feel on when to cut where. Willie Parker, even with all that blazing speed, was only so so, due to his lack of vision. He didn't completely lack instinct, but his vision and feel wasn't that great.

Did he bench as much as Heath Evans though?
 
In looking at who was picked this year and the alternatives for the defensive back field 2 guys with size and speed were taken. The kids can be coached to play better. They can be taught to play the position better than they did in college. If it works out good for the steelers. If not we have not given away much from the team to make room for them anyway. With the position the steelers were drafting I think this looks as good a combination of players they were likely to get. Time will tell how effective these choices were.
The one I am most impressed with is the guy in the seventh round that plays linebacker, more bench reps than jarvis and a tenth faster in the 40 and managed to put up 400 plus tackles in college, he also did not cost us a 1st round pick. Folks say he is a long shot to make the team, he was also a bit faster than debo out of college as well. The kid might actually turn into something.
 
Didn't they move Davis to CB in college because they were shorthanded there and had someone else who could play S?

That and he wasn't doing a good job in coverage. If Davis was a good corner, the NFL would draft him as a corner.
 
I still can't get past 4 minutes and 32 seconds of clips.

There is a part 2 and 3 coming. No worries 448, you'll see what amount to an entire year of targets against Burns. :) It's what the scouts look at when the evaluate players.
 
That and he wasn't doing a good job in coverage. If Davis was a good corner, the NFL would draft him as a corner.

How do you know he wasn't doing a good job at S? Do you personally know the UM coaches ? Or you found it "scouting" 4 minutes of tape?
 
How do you know he wasn't doing a good job at S? Do you personally know the UM coaches ? Or you found it "scouting" 4 minutes of tape?

I guess I feel like a coach doesn't say "You know, this guy isn't good at coverage, let's move him to CB"....
 
I guess I feel like a coach doesn't say "You know, this guy isn't good at coverage, let's move him to CB"....

Our resident Coach does apparently. "This guy is good in run support and hits like a hammer but he's not that good at coverage, yeah lets making him play CB where his strengths aren't maximized"
 
How do you know he wasn't doing a good job at S? Do you personally know the UM coaches ? Or you found it "scouting" 4 minutes of tape?


I know one of the largest UM boosters, who at events sees and said hello to Al Golden, his best bud Mark D'Onofrio who was horrible as the defensive coordinator. I also hear first-hand information about University of Miami football, some of which never hits the press.

I also attend 2-3 games a year, sometimes sitting near the greased hair of Drew Rosenhaus. Is that good enough for you?

Now that Mark Richt has taken over as the head coach, the program has a real shot to be relevant again. The high school football talent down here is the best in the nation. The University of Miami is based on an 180-mile radius of this talent.

If the school upgrades their work out facilities, watch out!

The main problem with UM recruits is not talent. Its lack of smarts and sometimes character. A good coaching staff that is respected and can teach can help to fix those problems.

But back to Burns, he wasn't fully committed to football and is raw, just as the film shows. Now if you want to break down these films clips, I will welcome a football debate if you disagree with me.
 
Top