When the Pittsburgh Steelers signed CB Chandon Sullivan, the thought was that he would factor into the team’s nickel cornerback spot, especially after the team released Arthur Maulet shortly after Sullivan signed. Given the fact that Pittsburgh drafted two long, tall outside CBs in Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr., Sullivan became an even more likely name to start in the slot, if not contribute there in sub packages.
Pittsburgh appears to have the same thought process with Sullivan. GM Omar Khan listed Sullivan as one of the options at slot cornerback while Sullivan took first-team reps at nickel during OTAs.
The 26-year-old doesn’t boast great pedigree as a former UDFA out of Georgia State in 2018 and graded out with a poor 55.8 overall grade from Pro Football Focus last season, allowing 51 completions on 2 targets (70.8%) for 638 yards and one TD in coverage, according to Pro Football Reference. However, while Sullivan’s 2022 season was one to forget, he was a part of a Minnesota Vikings defense that was statistically one of the worst in football last season, particularly against the passing game.
There is no denying that Sullivan needs to have a better season in 2023 to justify being considered a starter in the slot for Pittsburgh. Still, when you look back to his previous work in his three seasons with the Green Bay Packers, you see an unheralded defender who managed to make big plays in key moments for Green Bay. Sullivan boasted just a 55.0 overall grade from PFF in 2021, but he did pick off three passes during that season. His grades were notably better in 2019 and 2020, notching 73.1 and 62.2 overall grades, respectively from PFF.
Sullivan may be a former undrafted free agent, but he does bring experience to the secondary, having played 71 regular-season games during his NFL career along with 31 starts. He also has six playoff games under his belt (four starts), having experience in the postseason with the Packers and Vikings. As mentioned in a film room done on Sullivan shortly after he signed, he is a tenacious defender who gets involved against the run as well as can play both inside and outside in coverage. He plays well in off coverage, where he can react to the ball being thrown underneath, but also can cover receivers close to the LOS and run with them in coverage.
This isn’t to say that Sullivan is going to be Pittsburgh’s next Mile Hilton. He has notable issues when it comes to changing directions and keeping up with long speed down the field as well as consistency as a tackler. Still, Sullivan is a better cover man than Maulet was the last couple years in Pittsburgh and gives the Steelers a guy who can play all three downs at the nickel if they so choose. We could see Patrick Peterson rotate inside if Joey Porter Jr. and Levi Wallace get the outside spots in the nickel defense, but Peterson is more of a natural fit outside whereas Sullivan is more of a natural slot defender.
Ultimately, I do think that Chandon Sullivan will be a capable nickel corner for Pittsburgh in 2023. He may not rank inside the top ten of slot CBs in the league. But given the fact that Pittsburgh may move other guys into that spot in sub packages as well as Sullivan playing in a scheme like Pittsburgh’s over Minnesota’s which struggled so bad last year, I believe that Sullivan will have a rebound season and prove to be a viable slot option for Pittsburgh.
