The Pittsburgh Steelers’ biggest hole right now may be at center, but the team also has a clear need at the cornerback position that it needs to address this offseason. While Patrick Peterson is likely to remain on the roster in 2024, he probably isn’t the team’s top choice to start opposite Joey Porter Jr. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo said during a recent appearance on The Joe Starkey Show that Pittsburgh’s starting cornerback opposite Porter isn’t on the roster yet.
When asked who the corner opposite Porter will be in Week 1 next year, Fittipaldo answered “not on the roster yet.”
The question becomes whether the Steelers will sign a cornerback in free agency or draft one. It’s a talented cornerback draft class, and someone like Quinyon Mitchell or Kool-Aid McKinstry could be of interest to the Steelers at No. 20. There are also names like Kalen King or T.J. Tampa, who could be available in the second round, and Oregon’s Khyree Jackson is a name to watch in the middle rounds as the 6-3, 203-pounder has the size that the Steelers covet.
Free agency is also an option for the Steelers, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up about the Steelers landing L’Jarius Sneed or Jaylon Johnson, two of the top names available. Both of them can still be franchise-tagged, although Kansas City’s situation with DL Chris Jones could lead to the team using the tag on him. Either way, Sneed is likely to command more money than Pittsburgh will want to pay, and names like Tennessee’s Sean Murphy-Bunting and Adoree Jackson of the New York Giants are probably going to be more in play.
It’s going to be interesting to see how Pittsburgh approaches adding at cornerback. Porter looks like a long-term building block after an impressive rookie season, and the team could look at his success and add another rookie who has the potential to form a talented tandem for years to come. But with other needs to address and a deeper cornerback class, they could go the veteran route in free agency and then draft a cornerback in the middle rounds. The Steelers’ lack of depth at cornerback is an issue right now, but they do have Darius Rush, who played a very limited role in 2023, and Cory Trice Jr., who missed the season with a torn ACL.
Trice is more of a risk due to his injury history, but he did look good in OTAs and camp before going down with his injury. If he or Rush can take a step forward in their second season, then the team will suddenly have options with Porter, an outside addition, Peterson, Rush and Trice, plus potentially bringing back James Pierre or Chandon Sullivan.
We’ll see how the Steelers approach the situation this offseason, but they certainly have options.
