The Steelers made another addition to their defense via free agency when they signed Morgan Burnett to a three-year deal worth approximately $14 million. Burnett joins the team just two days after they signed Jon Bostic to boost their inside linebacker group.
But the range of Burnett's experience in different roles is what is most interesting about him as a player, so that's where we take to the film room for Carter's Classroom:
Burnett's abilities at safety aren't primarily focused on the center fielder style of free safety that the Steelers have been missing. Instead, Burnett is mostly a strong safety who can fill the various roles he's assigned. His proficiency against the run game is an attribute that lights up on tape and adds to his value as a defensive back who can take the role of a linebacker in certain situations.
Watch how he approaches the line of scrimmage and identifies the correct gap to attack, breaks down in the hole and then cuts down the Bears' Jordan Howard for no gain. Notice how Burnett lines up inside the box and plays like an extra linebacker on the field:
Burnett is able to get into the correct hole and turn to attack Howard before receiver Deonte Thompson, No. 14 for the Bears, can get a good shot to stop Burnett.
The Packers used Burnett all over the box to line up, move across formations and still have a sense of where he's supposed to attack and be in position to make a play against the ball carrier. As a safety, his range isn't nearly as limited as down linemen or linebackers who may be limited because of their skill set.
As an example of this, here's a play where you can see Burnett running in motion to start the play as he follows the Bears' tight end, Dion Sims across the formation and has to stick with him as an assignment.
Offenses putting players in motion are a simple, yet sometimes effective, way to throw off a defense and their gap assignments as they communicate adjustments. But as you see below, Burnett isn't confused in the least as he stays outside of the play, keeps contain and forces Howard back into the middle of the defense, and finishes the play with a tackle for loss:
The Steelers need more players they can rely on to line up across formations and fill the dual role of a solid cover man who can also play sound run defense. While Burnett shows the solid instincts of a run defender, the cover aspect of his game is what adds to his value as a safety who will see significant snaps in 2018 for the Steelers.
Here's Burnett dropping back and covering the Seahawks' star tight end, Jimmy Graham, on a curl route over the middle of the field. Burnett stands his ground in the middle of the field and engages Graham without drawing a flag for pass interference while being in perfect position to challenge the pass and swat the ball away:
The Packers did not shy away from using Burnett to cover tight ends, which might be another role the Steelers use him in 2018. While Sean Davis did a solid job for most of the season in that role, Burnett's experience and veteran skills could offer a different set of challenges for tight ends when they face the Steelers.
Here's Burnett playing press coverage against Graham. Watch how Burnett is able to use his hands to keep up with Graham and cuts right under Graham's 10-yard in route. While Burnett does have his hands on Graham's back just a tad, that's where that veteran experience kicks in that lets him know what he can get away with and what might draw a penalty:
But even when Burnett cannot make the play on the ball, he usually finds a way to be in the vicinity of the play and eventually bring down the ball carrier after the catch. Rarely on tape have I seen Burnett miss open tackles when he was in proper position, even against some of the premier players in the NFL.
Here's an example of just one of those situations when he had to cover Antonio Brown in 2017 on a drag route, despite being lined up 10 yards off the ball and having to trail Brown through several bodies in traffic. Burnett manages to not only track Brown down, but make the immediate tackle to limit the Steelers' gain:
Even though the Steelers converted a third and short, Burnett limited the amount of yards a superstar receiver like Brown could get on a drag route that would have lost plenty of safeties who had to travel that far just to make that tackle.
Burnett's skills allow him to line up all over the field and be an asset to a defense. While he's not the X-factor type of safety that will flip a game upside down, he is a dual threat to help against both the pass and the run in ways that make him reliable.
With how much Keith Butler likes to use sub packages and line up his defenders in various spots to confuse opposing offenses, Burnett presents the kind of veteran who has experience in doing just that, but also in communicating the roles and assignments of the defense throughout the unit.