Lorenzo Burns may be surprise of Arizona Cardinals secondary

One of the biggest concerns for the current version of the Arizona Cardinals is a lack of quality depth at the cornerback position. Malcolm Butler and Byron Murphy are solid performers, but the rest of the squad’s cover guys are chock-full of question marks. The club recently acquired a youngster, however, who could prove to be a pleasant surprise for Arizona’s defensive unit this coming fall.

Lorenzo Burns, a corner who played his college ball at the University of Arizona, was not selected during this year’s NFL Draft. Sensing an opportunity, the Cards pounced, and proceeded to sign the former Wildcats starter immediately after the three-day event had ended. What exactly will the Redbirds be getting with the 23-year old Burns?

During the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, Burns totaled 24 tackles, a pass breakup and a fumble recovery in the five games he suited up for. The 5’11,175 pounder was outstanding in 2019, when he tallied 46 tackles, four interceptions and seven passes defensed as a junior defender. As a sophomore in 2018, Burns registered 39 tackles, a sack and an impressive 11 pass breakups in 10 matchups that season.

The best performance turned in by Burns at the school came in 2017 when he was a freshman. In 13 contests (including a bowl game against Purdue), the talented defensive back racked up an eye-popping 81 tackles, five picks and seven passes defensed for the Wildcats. The five interceptions tied him with one other player for the most in the Pac-12 that year.

Butler, a free-agent pickup from the Tennessee Titans, will assume the number-one cornerback role for the Cardinals following the departure of Patrick Peterson. Murphy, who’s entering his third campaign as a member of coordinator Vance Joseph’s defense, is best-suited to line up in the slot. Robert Alford, the team’s number-three cover guy, is coming off of two debilitating injuries that has kept him out of action since December of 2018.

Burns will be in competition with a couple of other Big Red rookies as well. Marco Wilson is a fourth-round pick out of the University of Florida, and Tay Gowan is a sixth-round choice out of the University of Central Florida. Jace Whittaker, a former teammate of Burns with the Wildcats, is also in Arizona’s cornerback mix.

Every season, a player emerges as a surprise contributor. It’s usually an undrafted free agent who was practically written off by the entire league. What a great story it would be if Burns could come through in that way for the Cards in 2021.