The Pittsburgh Steelers’ drafting of CBs Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr. this year likely gave veteran Levi Wallace plenty of different feelings. Perhaps it caused him to question his job security, or at least his role within the defense. It may have made him feel a little old, even. He’s still just 28.
One thing he definitely felt was a little bit shorter. At 6-feet, he’s far from a Brandon Boykin, but Porter is 6-feer-2, Trice 6-feet-3, and both have well-filled frames, particularly the latter. So though he’s more than happy to play the older mentor, he also understands that not everything he tells them is going to be applicable.
“We play two different skill sets”, he told reporters yesterday, via the team’s website. “You got these big corners who play a little differently than I play and then they want to ask about how I cover. I’m like, ‘Yo, listen, if I had your length, I’d probably play it like this’”.
Two inches might not seem like a lot, but once you get beyond 6-feet, 6-foot-1 at the cornerback position, it really is a different ball game. That extra inch or two can really expand your range if you know how to use it, so if you’ve never had it to use before, you can only conjecture—and feel a little bit short.
“I’m not”, he said, a short cornerback when reporters reminded him of that fact while he was going off about the size of his young “Avatar” cornerbacks. “And I didn’t think I was until these two giants came into the room and I’m like, ‘Yo, y’all are huge’”.
Indeed, in a short amount of time (no pun intended), he did become one of the shortest defensive backs in the room. Patrick Peterson is also 6-foot-1, as are Luq Barcoo and Madre Harper. Chris Wilcox and James Pierre are both 6-foot-2 as well. He has to stand next to the 5-foot-10 Duke Dawson to feel tall.
The Steelers may have had a type in mind for the position during the draft, but the rookies still have to prove themselves like everybody else. They have both had some good moments so far in camp, particularly the second-rounder, Porter, who has been logging a lot of first-team snaps.
Indeed, Porter could figure into the starting lineup come September, especially with Peterson continuing to expand his portfolio with work not only in the slot but even at safety. If Peterson can move around, then the Steelers can put Wallace and Porter on the field at the same time.
At this point, that does seem to be the direction in which things are trending, though it really depends on Peterson’s ability to hold up playing extensively away from the boundary, which he has never done before in his career. He has seemed to be fully on board with the plan from Day One, though, which only aids in its chances of succeeding.
