INDIANAPOLIS – Texas CB Jahdae Barron is one of the most versatile defensive backs in the draft. He began his career primarily lining up in the slot, but in 2024, he transitioned more to the outside, playing 679 reps there. He’s also played in the box, serving as a chess piece for the Texas defense. Speaking to reporters at the NFL Combine, Barron, who had a formal meeting with the Steelers, said teams have talked to him about playing safety but he’s confident he can line up outside, in the nickel or at safety.
At Texas, he played with another versatile defensive back who got work in college at both safety and corner in current Steelers S Ryan Watts. Barron talked about what he took away from Watts’ game when the two of them played together for the Longhorns.
“Me and Ryan, we’re different sizes, but when I played the boundary most definitely…I watched a lot of his tape. Got his movement and how he attacks, move around the ball and things like that,” Barron said. “Just showing different looks, playing something else. So that’s what I took from Ryan and a lot of his game. Ryan was a big physical corner, I’m not as big as Ryan, but I do take that aspect of being physical.”
Barron will put his game up against any defensive back in the 2025 draft.
“I’m most definitely confident in my ability. I’m the most efficient and most consistent DB and just playing all four roles,” he said. “I played dime, corner, safety and nickel, so just having that in my bag and just knowing that I could be moved around and adjusted just to benefit anybody else’s team, I know that I will help.”
Barron came away with an SEC-high five interceptions last season to go along with 11 passes defensed, and he had eight interceptions in his college career. Those ball skills will translate no matter where he lines up at the next level, and his versatility is one of the big reasons why he’s considered a potential first-round pick in April.
Barron detailed what went into his meeting with Pittsburgh.
“It went good. They were just finding about me, really, who I was as a person, the things I faced, obstacles,” he said. “Obviously, I faced a lot of adversity, just a lot of growing up to do, and I grew up perfectly, maturing in the right way. Thanks to [Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian] for that. Just helped me on and off the field.
“He told me the better the man, the better the ball player, so just taking that into consideration every single year and every single year and every single day about my journey. It really changed me, and I matured a lot, just building connections, graduating, and then turned my life around on the field, how I took to the treatment room, things like that.”
Barron dealt with lingering injuries last spring, but he was able to return to the field and play in 16 games for Texas and turn into one of the nation’s top corners. He was an All-American, and he’s got a lot of experience with 57 career games played and 2,336 snaps over just the last three seasons.
For Jahdae Barron, the biggest thing that took him to the next level was focusing on different route concepts on tape and watching how that plays into the quarterback drop. He said that Texas secondary coach Terry Joseph taught him a red-, yellow- and green-light system to help him figure out what play was coming.
“Red light, that was an indicator of run, RPO. Yellow light, that was a four-to-five-yard drop. Typically, you’ll kind of get a deeper glance, eight-yard hitches and things like that. And that was yellow. The green light was quarterback dropping six-to-seven,” Barron said. “That’s when you’ll get your shots. You’ll get 15 yards and above, you’ll get big posts, big comebacks and things like that, digs and things like that. So just me being able to see that, reading two through the queue is just amazing for me. It allowed me to play fast and just understand the route concepts.”
Barron also said he paid a lot of attention to what the offensive line would do to help get an idea of what play was coming.
“Me just kind of playing the simplest things in my head when the play was starting, it made me be efficient throughout the play.”
Barron’s football IQ was on display throughout his interview, and he’s someone who could wear a number of hats in Pittsburgh’s defense. With the Steelers having a need in the slot and outside at cornerback, they could utilize him in different ways if he winds up being their selection. His versatility makes him really intriguing, and he could be under consideration for Pittsburgh at No. 21 overall.
