If early returns in Organized Team Activities are any indication, the Pittsburgh Steelers landed a serious sleeper and potential immediate impact player in seventh-round cornerback Cory Trice Jr. out of Purdue.
Trice, who was a consensus top 10 cornerback in the 2023 NFL Draft, fell to the seventh round to Pittsburgh at No. 241 overall. He was the 31st corner to come off the board when the Steelers turned in his draft card on Day 3 of the draft. Reportedly, medical concerns were the biggest concern with Trice entering the NFL after tearing his ACL in college and suffering other groin and ankle injuries throughout his football career.
The medical concerns never had anything to do with his actual abilities on the field though, and early on in OTAs Trice is turning heads. The Purdue product reportedly had a strong day of practice last Wednesday, according to veteran safety Damontae Kazee, breaking up a number of passes and picking off another, Kazee told the Tribune-Review’s Chris Adamski.
Now, entering the third and final week of OTAs, Trice is garnering more and more attention.
The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner, who covers the draft for the subscription website, highlighted Trice as one of his late day 3 NFL Draft sleepers who could make an “immediate impact” for their respective teams.
“This could go in the books as one hell of a steal. Trice, a 6-3, 206-pounder with elite burst (broad jump of 11 feet) and agility (6.70 three-cone), most likely fell in the draft due to injury concerns — his 2021 season at Purdue included an ACL tear and an ankle injury, and he later suffered a groin injury. Trice, a former safety, also still has some technical issues in coverage as well,” Baumgardner writes regarding Trice as one of his late Day 3 sleepers. “But why did he slide to the seventh round? I’m not coming up with a great answer there. Our draft guru, Dane Brugler, had Trice ranked No. 88 overall in the 2023 class. Trice’s traits are off the charts, and he can play anywhere on the back end. He has the goods to compete for a spot on the depth chart immediately.”
Trice certainly has great traits overall for the position and has the physical tools and the play style to represent himself well in the league, possessing the height, length, speed, and physicality to make life hard on receivers due to the ground he can cover and the problems he can create at the catch point.
Those traits made him a consensus top 10 cornerback in the class, so the fact that he went off the board near the end of the seventh round and as the 31st cornerback overall in the class is rather absurd. His play so far on the field in the Steelers defense is intriguing and is raising expectations as the Trice continues to push for a spot on the 53-man roster.
With great size, good length, and plenty of physicality, he was a worthwhile flier late on Day Three. So far, he looks like a great steal for the Steelers. He also fits with the Steelers’ model of adding big and physical press-man type of cornerbacks, drafting him and Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr. with two of their seven selections.
While Trice still has to make the 53-man roster, days like last Thursday highlight what he’s capable of doing.
If he makes the 53-man roster for the Steelers and eventually works his way into a role, there’s no telling how impactful he can be overall. His tape in college was rather good, and he fits exactly what the Steelers are looking for at the position moving forward. So far, it looks like the Steelers hit on a late-round pick at a position they’ve struggled to identify in the past.
