Prior to trading for him in mid-March to address the cornerback position, the Pittsburgh Steelers had long coveted cornerback Donte Jackson.
Head coach Mike Tomlin stated that rather clearly back in March after the trade, saying that he had coveted him for “years and years.” There was also the report from NFL Insider Tom Pelissero the day after the trade that the Steelers had been trying to acquire Jackson before and during the 2023 season.
Turns out, Jackson was almost a Steeler before then.
Following his first training camp practice with the Steelers, Jackson told the team’s new play-by-play man Rob King that he nearly signed with the Steelers during the offseason ahead of the 2022 season when he was a free agent. Ultimately, he returned to the Carolina Panthers on a three-year, $35 million deal.
But the Steelers were in the mix and nearly landed the big fish they had been chasing.
“I couldn’t be excited more…because I was originally gonna come here in free agency in 2022,” Jackson said to King, according to video via Steelers.com. “But the other team won a bidding war or whatever like that. So to get the chance to really do this, it was match made in heaven.
“Man, I’m excited to be here.”
Jackson said this offseason that the Steelers had shown interest in 2022 when he was a free agent, but he never came close to saying what he said to King about nearly signing here and ultimately choosing Carolina after a bidding war.
If the Steelers would have landed Jackson in free agency, it seems unlikely that they would have signed one of veteran cornerback Levi Wallace or re-signed Ahkello Witherspoon that offseason. Ultimately, the Steelers signed Wallace and extended Witherspoon, pairing those two with veteran Cameron Sutton at the position entering the 2022 season.
After missing out on him in free agency, the Steelers then tried to trade for him during the 2023 season and again struck out.
This offseason though, they landed their guy. He’s thrilled to be a Steeler and appears to be a great fit on paper. Hopefully the Steelers’ long-time interest, dating back to scouting him heavily leading up to the 2018 NFL Draft, pays off on the field.
