One day after the Pittsburgh Steelers decided to promote cornerback Doran Grant From the practice squad to their 53 man roster, the speculation started once again that he might eventually move to the safety down the road. On Thursday, defensive coordinator Keith Butler was asked about that possibility and he didn’t rule it out.
“Yes. There is nothing closed on him,” said Butler. “This is the guy’s first year and we need to take time, let him play in this system and see how he does before we make a decision on him.”
If you remember back to when Grant was drafted, defensive backs coach Carnell Lake was asked during his post-selection press conference if the Ohio State product could eventually play the safety position.
“I have that in my notes,” said Lake. “I think he’s that strong of a tackler that he can easily transition from corner to safety.”
While Grant very well could wind up making the move to safety, he said on Thursday he’s yet to practice at the position since he’s been in Pittsburgh, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Being as the Steelers now only have five cornerbacks on their roster, I think it’s safe to say that Grant will continue to practice at the position he played in college for the remainder of the season.
Thanks to his physical style of play and his perceived defensive smarts, perhaps the Steelers will look to begin transitioning Grant to safety next offseason and especially if they think current reserve safety Shamarko Thomas doesn’t have a future as a starter.
As things stand right now, the Steelers only have two safeties under contract for the 2016 season and they are Thomas and Mike Mitchell, so that’s another thing to keep in mind when it comes to potential position switch for Grant.
