5th Round Nets More Help in the Secondary, Running Game

The Steelers had two picks in the 5th round on Sunday, the first of which was the 32nd pick of the round. It was with that pick they took 5-9, Central Florida CB Joe Burnett. Here’s the word on Burnett from NFL.com:

Burnett made headlines since starting as a freshman because of his skills as a cornerback (16 career interceptions, 35 pass breakups) and return man (three punt, two kickoff returns for touchdown). The four-year starter was named first-team All-Conference USA at cornerback and kickoff and punt returner as a senior. A bit smaller and slower than most teams would like in a starter, Burnett is a strong, confident Tampa-2 corner in the making.

With the second pick in the 5th, one pick later, the team took UNLV running back Frank Summers. Last season he ran for 740 yards and 8 TD’s, and in his college career he ran for 1668 yards and 14 touchdowns. The 23-year-old had three 100-yard rushing games last season.

Here is his bio from the UNLV website:

An experienced, strong, physical back who is a punishing runner and honors candidate as a senior … A workhorse who gets better as the game goes along … A 1,000-yard threat in 2008 after nearly hitting that mark last season … Nicknamed “The Tank” for his bruising running style … Can also catch the ball effectively out of the backfield … Is the only player in UNLV history to have led his team in both rushing (six) and receiving (four) touchdowns in the same season … Posted both the team’s longest rushing score (36 yards) and receiving score (56) last season … Named as the Toughest Player to Bring Down in the MWC by Lindy’s … Also included among the league’s top-10 players with NFL Talent by the preview magazine … The former Pac-10 signee was also recruited by Utah and Washington State as well as USC as a fullback out of JC … A member of the 2008 Rebel Leadership Committee.