Artie Burns

Artie Burns
No. 25 Pittsburgh Steelers
Position: Cornerback
Personal information
Date of birth: (1995-05-01) May 1, 1995
Place of birth: Miami, Florida
Height: 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight: 197 lb (89 kg)
Career information
High school: Miami (FL) Northwestern
College: Miami (FL)
NFL Draft: 2016 / Round: 1 / Pick: 25
Career history
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
  • 2 - time USA Today Track and Field All-American (2011 & 2012)
  • American Junior Record 60 meter hurdles (2014)
  • ACC 60 meter hurdles champion (2014)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 12, 2016
Total tackles: 37
Sacks: 0.0
Forced fumbles: 0
Pass deflections: 9
Interceptions: 2
Player stats at NFL.com

Artie Tyrone Burns Jr. (born May 1, 1995) is an American football cornerback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Miami.[1][2] He is also a world-class hurdler.

Early years

A native of Miami, Burns attended Miami Northwestern High School, where he played defensive back and was a teammate of current Steelers teammate wide receiver Eli Rodgers, Vikings Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, and Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper.[3] As a junior, playing safety, Burns made 80 tackles, 10 for losses. He also broke up 87 passes, caused 17 fumbles and made 22 interception.[4] Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Burns was listed as the No. 15 cornerback prospect in his class.[5]

College career

He committed to Miami, where the Hurricanes hoped to pair him with Tracy Howard on the outside.[6]

He was an All-USA high school track and field team selection by USA Today in 2011 and 2012.[7][8] At the 2011 USA Youth outdoor track and field championships, Burns won both the 110 meter hurdles (13.90),and the 400 meter hurdles (52.23). At the 2012 Bob Hayes Invitational, Burns broke records in the 110 hurdles (13.35) and the 300 (36.14), both originally set by Michael Timpson in 1985.[4] His 110 hurdles time was the second-fastest world-wide by a youth athlete in 2012, behind only Wilhem Belocian's 13.29 at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Athletics in Barcelona. In 2012 Burns had the No. 5 time in the World (No. 1 in USA) in the 110 meter hurdles amongst junior athletes (under 20).[9] In 2014 Burns broke the American junior record in the indoor 60 meter hurdles, breaking a 38-year-old record.

Professional career

Coming out of the University of Miami, Burns was projected by analysts to be a first or second round pick. He attended the NFL Combine but was unable to complete all the drills after suffering a knee injury. He stood on his combine numbers at the Miami Hurricane's Pro Day, but chose to redo the vertical and added two inches while completing the other drills he was unable to perform at the combine. [10] He worked out with 12 other Miami Hurricanes in front of repersentitives from a total of 31 teams, including Steeler's head coach Mike Tomlin. Although his Pro Day numbers were hampered by a torrential down pour, he was able to proceed and complete his drills. After his workout, general managers from three teams commented that he is a top cornerback prospect.[11]

Pre-draft measurables
Ht WtArm lengthHand size 40-yd dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert Broad BP
6 ft 0 in 193 lb33 1⁄4 in9 1⁄2 in 4.46 s 1.56 s 2.63 s 4.33 s 6.96 s 33 in 10 ft 4 in 7 reps
All values from NFL Combine and Miami Hurricane's Pro Day[12]

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Burns with the 25th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

On June 8, 2016, the Steelers signed him to a four-year, $9.59 million rookie contract with a $5.17 million signing bonus.[13]

He started the season as the third cornerback behind veterans William Gay and Ross Cockrell. On September 12, 2016, he made his professional debut against the Washington Redskins. On October 16, 2016, Burns made a season-high 5 solo tackles during a 15-30 loss to the Miami Dolphins. The following game, he made four solo tackles during a loss against the New England Patriots.[14] Burn's was promoted to the starting nickel back position for the sixth game of the season after fellow rookie Sean Davis played in the slot for the first five games.

On November 6, 2016, Burns started his first career game against the Baltimore Ravens and intercepted a pass by Joe Flacco in the first quarter. It was the first interception of the season by a Steeler's defensive back.[15]

Personal life

Burns was born to Artie Tyrone Burns and Dana Smith and was raised in Miami, Florida. On October 24, 2006, his father was arrested in South Carolina for trafficking cocaine and was sentenced to 25-years in prison. His father's projected release date is May 24, 2027. His mother passed away from a sudden heart attack at the age of 44 in October 2016. The University of Miami's digital department raised $40,000 through a GoFundMe account for his mother's medical expenses. Burns also has a one-year old son named A.J. with his girlfriend of three years, Ella, and has two younger brothers, Jordan, age 14, Thomas, age 16.

He plans to move his younger brothers to Pittsburgh with him full-time and has already began scouting Pittsburgh-area schools for them to attend. His brother, Thomas Burns, is already a highly sought after cornerback, receiving scholarship offers from Purdue and Miami.[3] On February 25, 2015, his brother, Thomas Burns, commited to play football for his alma mater, the University of Miami.[16]

References

External links

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