Remember all of that talk about Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Doran Grant possibly making a move to safety this year? Well, apparently that’s still a possibility, according to one of the team’s beat writers.
During his Wednesday online chat, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was asked about Grant and he wrote that he’s been told the Steelers will look at last year’s fourth-round draft pick out of Ohio State as a safety very soon in training camp.
Being as Grant isn’t being looked at as an option at nickel cornerback now that the team has lost Senquez Golson for an extended amount of time to a Lisfranc injury, it certainly is plausible that a move to safety could be in the works for the second-year player in addition to possibly still getting work on the outside as a cornerback.
Immediately after Grant was drafted in 2015, Steelers defensive backs coach Carnell Lake didn’t rule out a future move to safety.
“I have that in my notes,” said Lake at the time. “I think he’s that strong of a tackler that he can easily transition from corner to safety.”
Last November, Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler was also asked about a possible position switch for Grant and he didn’t rule it out either.
“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.”
With it looking like rookie second-round draft pick Sean Davis might wind up being the slot defender in the team’s sub package defenses this season, it would likely result in the team needing another player who can play safety in case of an emergency. Currently, Mike Mitchell and Robert Golden look set to be the two starters this year with the fourth-year Shamarko Thomas serving as depth at the position. While the team also has safeties Ross Ventrone and Jordan Dangerfield currently on their 90-man roster, like Grant, both are far from guaranteed spots on this year’s final 53-man team.
We’ll have to see if Grant is moved around next week in the team’s final few days of training camp practices. I’m sure Alex Kozora will pass along the position switch should it indeed wind up happening.
Stay tuned.
