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Pittsburgh Steelers: Meet the pick, Justin Layne

By Brandon Kring

TEMPE, AZ - SEPTEMBER 08: Wide receiver N'Keal Harry #1 of the Arizona State Sun Devils mkaes a leaping catch over cornerback Justin Layne #2 of the Michigan State Spartans during the college football game at Sun Devil Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tempe, Arizona. The Sun Devils defeated the Spartans 16-13. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
TEMPE, AZ - SEPTEMBER 08: Wide receiver N'Keal Harry #1 of the Arizona State Sun Devils mkaes a leaping catch over cornerback Justin Layne #2 of the Michigan State Spartans during the college football game at Sun Devil Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tempe, Arizona. The Sun Devils defeated the Spartans 16-13. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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It is no secret the Pittsburgh Steelers secondary could use play-makers. The team attempted to address that in the third round with the selection of Justin Layne from Michigan State.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have seemingly found one of their needs to be corner for the last few seasons now. They added two this offseason via free agency and the draft.

The signing of Steven Nelson allowed them to not have to reach for one in the draft. This lead to them finding  a possible gem in Justin Layne from Michigan State.

Layne is a tall and lanky press corner that stands 6-foot 2-inches tall and weighs in at 192 pounds. He was recruited as a receiver and then made the switch full-time to corner in his sophomore season.

His background as a receiver gives him a better feel for routes as they are being ran. This gives him an advantage in the bump and run to feel what may be coming.

Layne relies on his movement and technique to make up for his speed as he only ran a 4.5 unofficial 40- yard dash at the combine. His ball production was great in college as he had three interception and 24 passes defensed in just three years.

He will not need to worry about being thrust into the starting lineup unless he out-plays Steven Nelson for an outside starting job. Nelson was signed to be the number two corner for the 2019 season at least.

Layne will get the benefit of time to hone his skills and learn, as well as adapt to the speed of the pro game. He can also be an asset on special teams while he does so.

Layne drew a loose comparison to William Jackson in Cincinnati, who most fans will remember Pittsburgh had intentions of taking before the Bengals took him just before their pick. If he would turn out how Jackson has in his young career thus far, the Steelers will be very happy with the selection.

Layne provides great value as they got him with their later third round selection. He had been thought of as a second rounder and there were isolated thought of him sneaking into the back of the first round in a top-heavy corner class.

I think the corner class was deep this season despite the top three being talked about the most. That thought got some validation when only Deandre Baker was taken in the first at pick 30.

All in all, the value and ceiling of Lane was too good to pass up and the Steelers did not. He has a good situation in Pittsburgh and the hope is he takes advantage of it to work into a reliable corner for years to come in Pittsburgh.

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