Jets cornerback Juston Burris has elevated his play the past two weeks in what's been a tug-of-war season.

Against the Chargers, Burris flashed with his tackling. With 12:20 remaining in the second quarter, he darted towards Chargers WR Travis Benjamin on an end-around and brought him down for a 4-yard loss. On LA's next drive, the NC State product forced a fourth down as he tackled wideout Tyrell Williams for a 1-yard gain on 3rd-and-7. 

"He really stepped up," coordinator Kacy Rodgers told reporters Thursday. "After going through it and watching the tape, I thought he really competed and did some good things. You can kind of see as the game went on, his confidence is growing and growing especially on that third-down stop he made. He competed well."

While Burris received praise, his number hasn't always been called this year. In the beginning of the season, he held the rope in his favor as he lined up opposite Morris Claiborne in sub packages. In Weeks 1 and 2, Burris got 61 combined defensive snaps, third among Jets corners, and registered an interception. But his grip of the rope loosened up in the middle of the season as Darryl Roberts started seeing more time on the outside. Lately, the 6'0", 212-pound Burris found his footing and pulled the rope back.

"He's been banged up," head coach Todd Bowles said. "He had a couple good weeks of practice. We wanted to see him play again. It was time for him to play again. He earned some playing time so we put him in...He played well. "

In Weeks 15-16, Burris has played 88 defensive snaps, his most in back-to-back games this season, and his play has caught the eye of his teammates, especially fellow corner Buster Skrine. Skrine said Burris is smarter this year and is encouraged by how he's responded to the ebbs and flows of his season.

"I think Juston is doing a great job," Skrine said on Inside the Jets. "I think the last four games, he's only allowed two catches or something crazy like that. He's doing a great job. I always thought Juston was a good player. There was a time in the season Darryl Roberts got to play a little bit more than him, but just to come in there and come back strong, it's good to see. He's a confident guy."