Why Justin Gilbert's Rookie Struggles Don't Mean He Is a Bust for the Browns

It is quite common to see rookies struggle in the NFL like cornerback Justin Gilbert did on Sunday. The Cleveland Browns selected him with the eighth overall pick because they thought he was going to have a great career, not just one good game.

In fact, the Browns liked him so much they traded up one spot to make sure they snagged the corner they coveted. Gilbert is a guy the Browns have very high hopes.

So why then did he struggle so badly against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday? Better yet, why has he struggled the entire offseason?

He was targeted in the Browns' final two preseason games with Joe Haden and Buster Skrine on the sidelines. Against St. Louis, he and Leon McFadden allowed 253 passing yards to the St. Louis Rams backup quarterbacks after Sam Bradford left with a knee injury.

That was the preseason, however. That is the time when you want your rookies to get their struggles out of their system and be ready for the real competition. Gilbert wasn’t ready.

He played 59 of 71 defensive snaps in his NFL debut and was picked on pretty much the entire time. Ben Roethlisberger passed for 356 yards and a touchdown. Until the coaches film is released on Wednesday, we won’t know exactly how many of those yards were Gilbert’s fault, but you can be certain it will be a huge chunk.

Veteran quarterbacks know that rookie corners are susceptible to big plays. Gilbert was so anxious to try and make something happen in the first quarter against the Steelers that he took quite possibly the worst angle I have ever seen a corner take on a pass.

While defending an out route near the end zone, he tried to jump the pass and make a big play. Unfortunately, this is the NFL, and Roesthlisberger’s throw went by him before he could take two steps toward the line of scrimmage.

In the end, it just looked like Gilbert was running the completely wrong way. Welcome to the league, kid.

"I know they're going to come after me so there's nothing to learn from this game because I already knew what was going to happen,” Gilbert told Tom Reed of the Northeast Ohio Media Group after the Browns loss on Sunday. “Just gotta make plays."

Gilbert might know that they will be coming after him, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t learn anything from the experience. This postgame quote illustrates his youth and frustration more than anything.

He may not have started the game, but he still ended up playing far too many snaps,according to head coach Mike Pettine. That is going to change quickly.

“Looking back on it, maybe he did play too many reps,” Mike Pettine told Scott Petrack of The Elyria Chronicle-Telegram on Monday. “We’re not looking to bench him, but maybe scale back his reps this week.”

"

Rough 1st game for CB Justin Gilbert. Saw several of the same mistakes from college. He's going to require a ton of patience #Browns

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) September 7, 2014"

When camp closed he had not beaten out Skrine for the starting cornerback job opposite Haden, and that was probably a good thing. The fact that he missed time after injuring his knee in OTAs limited what he could do for a large portion of training camp.

Maybe all that missed time is catching up to Gilbert now. But that does not mean things won’t get better for the youngster from Oklahoma State.

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The NFL has a long history of rookie corners struggling. This is actually quite commonplace.

You don’t have to look any further than on the other side of the defensive formation from Gilbert. Haden was not a shutdown corner the second he walked into the league. People forget that in 2010 he started just seven games.

Early in his career Haden was abused at times by A.J. Green and other receivers. ClevelandFrowns.com did a game-film breakdown and highlighted some of his weaknesses. While the site gave him credit for a good rookie season, it also showed that there was room for vast improvement.

"He’s going to need to improve his knowledge of the passing game as well as his technique if he’s going to compete against this caliber of athlete on a weekly basis."

If you want another example of a corner who struggled right out of the gate and turned it around look at one of the current elite corners in the NFL. There was a time when people were seriously asking if Patrick Peterson was a bust.

Now Peterson is regarded as a top-three cornerback in the NFL with elite coverage skills. That was not always the case, however.

This article from ArizonaSports.com in 2011 was titled, “Patrick Peterson: Great returner, struggling corner.” It cites Pro Football Focus stats which are less than flattering for Peterson.

"He currently leads all corners in yards allowed with 641. Peterson is also tied for second in penalties given up (his eight equals Cedric Griffin and is one behind Brandon Browner); hardly DROTY material."

Both Haden and Peterson bounced back from rough beginnings in their career to reach the elite level. Perhaps Gilbert will not be elite, though. Maybe he will just be a serviceable corner who starts for a long time.

There is one of those currently on the Browns who also struggled mightily in his rookie season. Buster Skrine was a human sieve when it came to opponents' passing attacks his rookie year. He was the target of every fan’s anger and the butt of every joke made about the Browns defense.

Skrine was flat-out bad. Then something miraculous happened; he got better. He improved with time and reps, and he is now not only a serviceable corner, but dare I say he’s also pretty darn good.

So this is not the end for Gilbert. It is nowhere near it. In fact, this was literally just the beginning. Unfortunately it was not the beginning he or the Browns' front office and coaching staff had hoped for.

Before anyone drops the dreaded “bust” title on him, they need to remember how tough it is to transition to the NFL at his position. He has the raw talent to play at a high level in this league, but just like a toddler learning to walk, it will take practice and plenty of falls.

In the meantime, Browns fans are going to have to get used to him falling. Just hopefully next time he falls, it won’t be on the play that sets up a game-winning field goal for the Steelers.