Maybe the Pittsburgh Steelers should not have reached on Artie Burns in the first place? Then again, he was coming out of Miami with a good deal of talent. While it did not work out for him in his four-year run with the Steelers, Burns has opted to come home to begin year 10 of his NFL career. Burns singed a one-year contract with the Miami Dolphins back in March, but now it looks like he may not make the team.
Burns played sporadically the last few years as a member of the Seattle Seahawks. There were two years with the Chicago Bears sprinkled in between, and here we are now in Miami. Burns turned 30 earlier this month. While he may love the opportunity to play for his hometown team in the same stadium he starred at in college, there are a lot of moving pieces in Miami, especially in the Dolphins secondary.
Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post reported that Miami had signed cornerback Ryan Cooper Jr. on Tuesday morning, while placing another cornerback on the injured reserve list in Jason Maitre. This may be a simple transaction, but it could signify something else. Cooper is younger, and therefore cheaper than Burns. We also have to get some resolution when it comes to Miami trading away Jalen Ramsey.
I would still be on Burns being able to get to year 10 with the Dolphins, but his career is on the brink.
All I know is this is a make-or-break year for the Dolphins, and everybody on the roster has to produce.
Artie Burns' hometown reunion with Miami Dolphins could be short-lived
Cooper is entering his second NFL season out of Oregon State by way of the College at San Mateo. He went undrafted last spring but was signed by the Baltimore Ravens, where he made his NFL debut in late October. After being released, he was signed by Seattle and then finished out the season on their practice squad. Seattle released him after the year and Miami then signed him for the first time.
Cooper was released previously by Miami only a few weeks ago. This leads me to believe that Miami likes this guy, or at least believes he can help their team win this season. Since his pathway into the NFL was unlike that of Burns, one could argue that the 23-year-old is a bit hungrier than the 30-year-old former first-round pick out of Miami. I think that could play a part in who could make this team.
In the end, it just goes to show how quickly a narrative on a player can change. Burns was thought to be a game-changing defensive back going to the Steelers out of Miami way back in 2016. Nearly a decade later, we are wondering if he is even going to make his hometown team. I think he probably will, but Miami cannot afford to have anybody just collecting checks on their roster in 2025.
The most important thing here is to see how the secondary depth chart looks after the Ramsey trade.