It’s hard to find a true scheme fit from college to the pros in football, considering how different the games tend to be played at times between the two levels, even with the games moving closer and closer to being very similar in recent years.
But this year, despite some major differences in the games, there appears to be one ideal scheme fit from college to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ scheme, particularly on defense.
That would be Florida State cornerback Azareye’h Thomas.
According to ESPN’s Jordan Reid, Thomas is an ideal scheme fit for the Steelers, as he posted on Twitter Wednesday afternoon regarding the young cornerback.
Though Reid doesn’t provide an explanation on why he believes that, it’s not hard to see why that’s the case when reading up on Thomas and watching the tape. He’s a long, physical cornerback who thrives in press-man coverage, which the Steelers utilize quite a bit under head coach Mike Tomlin and defensive coordinator Teryl Austin.
The Steelers have looked for those “avatar” cornerbacks over the years, landing Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr. in the 2023 NFL Draft, and have also taken some swings on futures deals like Kyler McMichael and Cameron McCutcheon. Thomas would certainly fit that mold the Steelers continue to search for.
In his Steelers Depot scouting report, Alex Kozora was high on Thomas despite just one year of starting experience, comparing him to free agent cornerback Charvarius Ward.
“Overall, Thomas doesn’t have a ton of experience, and his game is raw. He has to work on his technique, play cleaner, and show more consistency in man coverage. But there’s plenty of upside here as a high-end cover corner with all the tools in his belt,” Kozora writes in his scouting report. “His physicality and aggressiveness separate him from other pure-cover corners who won’t offer run support like Thomas can. Don’t throw him into the starting lineup Day 1 but by his sophomore year, he could take a leap.
“He certainly has the profile Pittsburgh looks for.”
Thomas makes quite a bit of sense for the Steelers, who need to find a long-term No. 2 cornerback on the other side of Porter. Donte Jackson is a free agent and despite recording a career-high in interceptions in 2024, he struggled down the stretch with health and his play. Cameron Sutton was unplayable, and Beanie Bishop Jr. is slot only.
James Pierre remains intriguing, but is more of a special teams guy, so there is a great need at the position for the Black and Gold. Kozora has a second-round grade on Thomas, and that could be the sweet spot for the Steelers to address the position in the draft, depending on what they do in free agency at the position of need.
