LATROBE, Pa. -- The Steelers' cornerback position is finally filled with interesting talent and starters who could make for an interesting season. But working in the background is rookie cornerback Justin Layne, lining up outside the numbers with the second- and third-team defenses.
Layne had been struggling in the early days of camp, getting beat by receivers and not looking confident in challenging receivers. But that changed in the Wednesday and Thursday practices this week. So let's look at some of the camp notes I've taken on him and where he's growing:
I wrote about Layne and his prospect profile after the draft, so I was looking for him to find the confidence he had when he was put on islands against speedy Big Ten receivers. But that confidence didn't show itself in the first weekend of camp. He wasn't finding the ball well and looked less aggressive on the ball than what I had noticed in his college tape.
But the past two practices, I've seen him more ready to challenge routes. In back to back plays he was targeted by Devlin Hodges: He had a solid challenge on a Tevin Jones catch, then a solid breakup while covering Diontae Spencer. What I noticed was that Layne looked as though he wasn't questioning himself as much in coverage and was committing to his assignment.
That's a common adjustment for a young cornerback who's getting used to NFL coverage schemes. When I asked him about that, he said it was pretty simple.
"I just need to get in the playbook more," Layne said. "I need to feel more comfortable out there and adjust to this learning curve. I knew wherever I ended up in the NFL I would be challenged by talented guys, so this is just my journey."
That comfort is what allowed him to run downfield for big pass breakups in college. Watch how he pins this receiver to the sideline and goes up to find the ball and swat it away:
Layne said that his strength right now in practices has been his physicality against the run. But the Steelers brought him in for his ability to read and jump routes while being aggressive on the ball. Watch how he switches off this zone assignment to attack a flat route and swat the ball away:
Keep an eye out in the preseason for how aggressive Layne attacks different routes and plays the ball. If he's more passive, it could be an indication he's still struggling with the playbook and understanding all the switches on defense. If he's making more big plays on the ball, even if they're unsuccessful, that will be the sign he's growing.
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