Cornerback is a position of need for the Pittsburgh Steelers, that much is certain.
Veterans Levi Wallace and Chandon Sullivan are set to hit unrestricted free agency as is James Pierre. Patrick Peterson’s status is uncertain considering his sizable cap hit for the 2024 season.
Though Joey Porter Jr. was quite impressive in his rookie season and looks like a real building block for the Black and Gold, more is needed at the position, whether that’s in free agency, through the 2024 NFL Draft, or both.
For ESPN’s Aaron Schatz, adding a veteran in free agency is a wise move. In fact, Schatz has one veteran in mind for the Steelers, one who has had plenty of connections to Pittsburgh so far in his career.
Kendall Fuller.
“The Steelers have some need at cornerback, especially if they decide to move Patrick Peterson to safety full-time. Fuller was the only Commanders cornerback last season with strong coverage numbers,” Schatz writes regarding a Fuller fit with Pittsburgh. “His coverage DVOA was similar to those of L’Jarius Sneed and Marshon Lattimore, although he did allow a lot of touchdowns. In Pittsburgh, he could play opposite Joey Porter Jr. and take the easier assignment while Porter works on the opposition’s No. 1 receiver. Fuller should be good enough to allow Pittsburgh’s safeties to shade toward Porter’s man.”
Last season, Fuller graded out at 83.1 overall from Pro Football Focus, including a 78.1 against the run and an 82.8 in coverage in 1,020 total snaps. That 83.1 overall grade, which had him as the eighth-best cornerback in football in PFF’s metrics.
On the year, Fuller allowed 49 receptions on 73 targets for 488 yards. He allowed six touchdowns but recorded two interceptions and had five pass breakups, per PFF. The 67.1 completion percentage against was rather high, but he allowed just 10 yards per reception while playing primarily as a boundary corner, seeing 952 snaps on the outside and just 28 snaps in the slot and 37 snaps in the box.
Coming out of Virginia Tech in the 2016 NFL Draft, the Steelers had some interest in Fuller, reportedly bringing him in for a pre-draft visit.
Fuller ultimately went in the third round at No. 84 to Washington in the draft and has since spent time with Washington from 2016-17, the Kansas City Chiefs from 2018-19, and again with Washington the last four seasons.
Despite coming out of college with some medical concerns, Fuller has played 14 or more games in each of the last four seasons, seeing action in 117 games with 93 career starts. In that span he has 16 interceptions.
Fuller turned 29 on Feb. 13 and is projected by PFF to receive a three-year, $40 million deal in free agency. That would include $25 million guaranteed, breaking down to $13.33 million per year. Fuller ranks as PFF’s third-best cornerback in free agency.
