The Pittsburgh Steelers could have been better at drafting defensive backs during the Kevin Colbert regime. He hit a particularly sour crescendo when the team selected Artie Burns with the 25th pick overall in 2016 and spent the 28th on Terrell Edmunds in 2018. Burns was an absolute disaster. Edmunds was a solid professional who never met the fan base’s expectations for a first-round draft pick. In an all too familiar trend for Steelers draft classes during the final seven years under Colbert, neither player is on the current roster.
%202023%20Camp%20Final%20with%20Logos/2L9A7672-544x306.jpg "Steelers Omar Khan")
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Steelers General Manager Omar Khan is looking to assemble another sensational draft class in 2024.
Omar Khan took over for Colbert in 2023 and immediately dipped his toe into the defensive back draft class. After pulling off a masterful trade of Chase Claypool to the Chicago Bears for the 32nd pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Khan selected Joey Porter Jr. from the Penn State Nittany Lions. Porter’s legacy ties to Pittsburgh, paired with an impressive performance on the field, has cemented him as the Steelers' number one cornerback after his rookie season.
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Steelers' Joey Porter Jr. is already the number one cornerback in town, despite being a rookie in 2023.
Shutdown cornerbacks are expensive, and the Steelers have time before they will have to pay the market rate for Porter. Cornerback is once again a position of need heading into the 2024 offseason, and Khan will have to address it through free agency or the 2024 NFL Draft. In the most recent mock draft by CBS Sports, Garrett Podell thinks that Pittsburgh will use the draft to address the position and pick Clemson Tigers' star cornerback, Nate Wiggins.
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Wiggins is an ideal fit as Porter's running mate for the next few seasons, and it would give the Steelers tremendous cap flexibility. The Steelers tried Patrick Peterson, Levi Wallace, James Pierre, and the hot dog vendor opposite the rookie with little success. Podell dispenses solid reasoning for the black and gold to pair Wiggins with Porter.
"The Steelers could use another young corner to pair with Joey Porter Jr., with Patrick Peterson getting older and Levi Wallace and Chandon Sullivan hitting free agency," Podell writes. "The First Team All-ACC (selection) will fit right into the Pittsburgh mold at the corner, standing 6'2" and weighing 185 pounds. Wiggins is a long, athletic cornerback with high-end speed. Mike Tomlin will have fun with this pick."
Wiggins is a slightly better prospect than Porter was coming out of Penn State. The Clemson cornerback is a tremendous man-to-man cover cornerback like Porter, but he is much more accomplished in zone coverage than Porter was coming out of college. Wiggins is expected to run a little faster than Porter did at the 2023 NFL Combine and could move up on draft boards across the NFL if his 40-yard dash time is faster than expected.
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According to a new CBS Sports mock draft draft, the Steelers' potential cornerback draft target is Nate Wiggins.
Wiggins would be an ideal fit in black and gold, but Khan may have to pull off a little magic to get him. The Clemson cornerback could be the first one selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, placing him just out of the Steelers' reach in the top 12-15 picks. Pittsburgh's second-year general manager may have to pull off another trade to move into a position to select him.
The Steelers are slated to face Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, and, theoretically, Deshaun Watson for the foreseeable future six times per season in the AFC North. They still need to address the quarterback position, but adding two shutdown cornerbacks that could allow them to match up man-to-man all over the field could radically shift the division dynamics in their favor.
An already ferocious pass rush would also get a tremendous boost by adding Wiggins into the mix. TJ Watt and Alex Highsmith could gain an extra half a second to get home and take away the top two receiving options for their opponents. The Steelers would still have to find an answer to slow down opposing tight ends, but Defensive Coordinator Terryl Austin could focus the defense on that task with a pair of corners like Porter and Wiggins.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Would you be excited with two young shutdown cornerbacks on defense? Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq.
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