With the Pittsburgh Steelers 2016 season in the books, we will shift our attention to the off-season. We will review each position group for the Steelers, and look into how it may change going from 2016 to 2017. For this edition, we will look at the cornerbacks.<\/p>\n
The Steelers started the year with William Gay <\/strong><\/a>and Ross Cockrell<\/strong><\/a> starting at cornerback, but many expected first-round draft pick, Artie Burns<\/strong><\/a>, to get the starting job at some point.\u00a0However, many fans thought that Burns would be replacing Cockrell.\u00a0Cockrell had some struggles in 2015 and Gay seemed to take control of the number one cornerback position.<\/p>\n As 2016 went on though, it became clear that Cockrell had improved drastically and Gay had lost a step.\u00a0By the end of the year, Cockrell had become the number one cornerback with Burns taking the other starting position.\u00a0Gay seemed to find his place as the nickel cornerback and finished the year in that position.<\/p>\n Gay ended the year with the same amount of tackles that he had in 2015: 58.\u00a0Cockrell finished the season with 62 tackles, a nice improvement from his total of 44 in 2015.\u00a0 Burns totaled 65 tackles in his first season as a Steeler.\u00a0Although Cockrell didn\u2019t record any interceptions, he was consistently covering the top wide receiver on the opposing team.\u00a0 Cockrell shut down A.J. Green<\/strong><\/a> when the Steelers played the Cincinnati Bengals, and he was constantly making huge plays in the red zone.\u00a0Burns led the team in interceptions with three, tying him with linebacker Ryan Shazier<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0Gay added another interception of his own.<\/p>\n The Steelers finished in the middle of the pack in passing defense, ranking 16th<\/sup> and giving up 242.6 passing yards per game.\u00a0The Steelers also ranked third in the NFL in completions of 20 yards or more allowed.\u00a0This shows that while they may be allowing a decent amount of passing yards, they\u2019re limiting opponents to shorter passes.\u00a0The exceptional tackling by the Steelers cornerbacks helps make this happen.<\/p>\n In 2017, it looks like Burns and Cockrell (currently a restricted free agent)\u00a0will again be the starting cornerbacks with Gay reprising his role as the nickel cornerback.\u00a0While the nickel cornerback is technically the third cornerback on the depth chart, the position is equally as important as the outside cornerback positions.<\/p>\n Gay fits into the nickel role well because of his experience and ability to read the quarterback and jump routes.\u00a0While\u00a0he may have lost a step in the speed department, he continues to gain knowledge and experience. The team acquired former Cleveland Browns cornerback Justin Gilbert<\/strong><\/a> last year, but it\u2019s unlikely that he\u2019ll return on the roster after not making much of an impact last year.<\/p>\n Burns made huge improvements over his rookie season last year and is expected to continue to get better.\u00a0While\u00a0he\u00a0was described as raw when he entered the draft last year, it’s clear that the Steelers knew what they were doing when they selected him in the first round. Cockrell also improved drastically last season and with both starting cornerbacks looking to be on a\u00a0major upswing, expect the Steelers secondary to be underrated and overlooked next season.<\/p>\n The Steelers were rumored to have been interested in several cornerbacks this off-season, but have yet to sign any.\u00a0First it was Darrelle Revis<\/strong><\/a> expressing interest\u00a0in returning to Pittsburgh and playing for the Steelers, but since his arrest he has lost interest from NFL teams.\u00a0Then, the Steelers were rumored to be in the mix for Stephon Gilmore<\/strong><\/a>, but he decided to sign with the defending champions, the New England Patriots.\u00a0After that, the team met with former Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback, Davon House<\/strong><\/a>, but again didn\u2019t sign him, as he would\u00a0ultimately join the Green Bay Packers.<\/p>\n Expect the Steelers to draft at least one cornerback, but probably two.\u00a0The team met with six cornerbacks at the NFL Combine, but none of them will likely be their first selection.\u00a0 The top talented cornerbacks that met with the Steelers are Cam Sutton<\/strong> from Tennessee, Desmond King<\/strong> from Iowa and Tre\u2019Davious White<\/strong> from LSU.\u00a0All three of those players could be taken in the first two rounds, but it\u2019s more likely that they\u2019re second or third round targets for the Steelers.<\/p>\n White is a tremendous athlete, who returned kickoffs and punts for LSU, and would be a dynamic addition to the Steelers secondary.\u00a0King is a Jim Thorpe Award winner and a natural leader, who shows exceptional intelligence and play-recognition.\u00a0Sutton has great size and strength and is a playmaker, who constantly seems to be around the ball.\u00a0The Steelers also met with Marquez White <\/strong>from Florida State, Nate Hairston <\/strong>from Temple and Shaquill Griffin<\/strong> from USF.<\/p>\n Main Photo:<\/p>\n2017 Outlook<\/h3>\n
Off-Season Preview<\/h3>\n