The Jets selected NC State cornerback Juston Burris in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. I remembered a few things about him from some of his college games, but I had less of a feel for this pick than any the Jets made outside of the punter they drafted in the seventh round. I have been studying up on Burris since the pick.
One game I came upon was NC State's contest against Clemson from Halloween.
Around the 28:50 mark, Burris makes a nice tackle in run support. It is what the announcers said after that which caught my attention, though.
In the days before you watch a game on television, the announcers speak with the coaches on both sides. They do it to get an idea on strategy. They also do it to get scouting reports on players. Who can tell you more about an opponent than the coaching staff that has been breaking down film and building a strategy how to beat that opponent?
After Burris makes that tackle, the announcers shared what they were told about him by the Clemson coaching staff.
Burris is a guy that when we were talking to the Clemson coaches, they couldn't stop talking about 11 (Burris' number). The other coaches always say, "11, 11." Clemson has looked at....what they have looked at in tape is who can you beat deep? Who has given up passes of 16 or more yards, and they said the cornerback Burris...very good against the run...hasn't been beat deep this year. The Clemson study showed that number 11 for NC State has not given up a long throw all season.
This was in October so the season was not over yet. The Pro Football Focus Draft Guide charted Burris as only allowing 26 catches all season for 266 yards.
Of course, some praise from an opponent and success in college does not always translate to NFL success. It was just interesting to hear the respect a coaching staff that almost won the National Championship had for this player.