Going into this draft, the Steelers are in a bit of an interesting situation. They have a pretty well-constructed roster but still maintain four obvious needs. Those needs seem to be a wide receiver, cornerback, offensive tackle, and center.
Cornerback was an issue heading into the 2023 Draft, and it was addressed by the Steelers, who made a great pick in Joey Porter Jr. However, they still need someone to play across from him in both the short and long term.
Luckily for them, this is a deep cornerback class. Pro Football Focus’ Trevor Sikkema was on The Rich Eisen Show earlier this week to talk about some of his favorite players in the draft.
The first one he mentioned was Mike Sainristil out of Michigan. Sainristil met with the Steelers ahead of his Pro Day and also had a formal meeting with them at the combine.
“One of the best football players in college football over the last couple of years. And I mean a converted wide receiver so he’s got really great ball skills.” Sikkema said. “It’s a draft where you always talk about potential and what this guy could be and the ceiling, but sometimes it’s just about drafting really good football players. “
Sainristil fits the bill of a prototypical Steelers slot cornerback, as while he doesn’t have a ton of size (5093, 182) he makes up for it with his physicality. He would be an instant plug-and-play for Pittsburgh in the slot, and would fill a hole the team has been trying to for the past few years.
The second Steelers-relevant sleeper Sikkema talked about was Iowa’s Cooper DeJean.
“If we go back to 2022’s tape, Cooper DeJean was lockdown.” Sikkema pointed out. “He brings that to the football field, the instincts, the ball skills, the shutdown ability, and he’s one of the best tacklers in the draft. Those are two guys at the cornerback position specifically that I’m pounding the table for.”
DeJean had a pre-draft visit with the Steelers yesterday and also had a formal at the combine. He’s one of the best pure athletes in the draft and would give the Steelers a deadly thunder-and-lightning punch on the outside between him and Joey Porter Jr.
The Steelers are likely to take a cornerback at some point during the first two days of the draft, and both guys named represent different levels of target for the Steelers. DeJean would likely have to be the selection at number 20 overall, while Sainristil would be the target with one of the team’s two third-round selections.
The cornerback room has seen constant change over the last two years, but hopefully, it can have some youth and stability in 2024 and beyond.
