The Steelers hosted two more wide receivers, two more cornerbacks and a safety for pre-draft visits Thursday at Rooney Sports Complex. Among them were wide receivers Shelton Gibson from West Virginia and Mackenzie Hollins from North Carolina, corners Ryan Lewis from Pitt and Marlon Humphrey from Alabama and safety Obi Melifonwu from UConn.
Gibson, 5-11, 192 pounds, presents a viable deep threat as a speedy receiver out of West Virginia, but consistency doing anything other than catching deep balls could be an issue. Over the last two seasons, 36 percent of his catches go for 25-plus yards. His 40 time at the NFL Combine was skewed, as he was clocked at a 4.5 but indicated that it was an issue with his start. At his pro day, he ran a 4.39 in front of scouts.
Gibson's draft stock has been all over the place. Some predict him as early as the second round and others have him as a late-round pick. His speed and ability to return kicks could make him an early pick that could turn into a project. In 2015 he caught 37 passes for 887 yards before increasing his production to 43 catches for 951 last season as a junior. He scored 17 touchdowns over those final two years at West Virginia before declaring early.
Hollins, 6-4, 210 pounds, is a bigger target who finds space well. He was a third-team all-conference pick in 2015, starting five of the last six contests. He caught 30 passes for 745 yards (24.8 per reception) with eight TDs. During his senior year, production went down due to a collarbone injury that required surgery. He caught just 16 passes for 309 yards and four TDs in seven games.
The Steelers struggled to find much production outside of Antonio Brown last season, and the No. 2 spot remains up for grabs this offseason.
Martavis Bryant could return, but the entire organization is on record that they aren’t going to rely on him. After that, there’s Darrius Heyward-Bey and a bunch of young and mostly unproven guys in Eli Rogers, Cobi Hamilton, Demarcus Ayers, the newly acquired Justin Hunter and unknown Canaan Severin.
Oh, yeah, and Sammie Coates.
As our Mark Kaboly wrote: If it’s the Coates who showed up through the first five games last year, the offense will be in good hands. If it’s the Coates who struggled through injuries over the final four months, somebody else will need to step up.
Three more defensive backs also made the rounds Thursday.
Pitt's Lewis, 6-0, 200 pounds, tied for the Panthers' lead with eight pass breakups, but he was considered the leader on a secondary that allowed the second-worst yardage totals in the passing game to opposing teams. He did pick off a pass against Penn State in the end zone that sealed the deal for a victory for the Panthers.
Humphrey, 6-0, 197 pounds, presents great size and speed — he ran a 4.41 at the combine — for a corner. Humphrey started all 15 games in 2015 after redshirting, earning Freshman All-SEC honors with 45 tackles, 3.5 for loss, three interceptions and eight PBUs for the national champion Crimson Tide. He again locked down a starting spot in 2016, intercepting two passes and breaking up five others. He's known to be able to play any type of coverage.
Melifonwu, 6-4, 224 pounds, is a prototypical NFL safety. He hits hard, has great speed (4.40) and is super athletic. He was a four-year starter for the Huskies and made an impact from start to finish. He finished his career with 351 tackles (115 his senior year), 11.0 TFL and eight interceptions. He also broke up 16 passes.
Here is a list of who has visited the Steelers so far (22 official visits, 6 unofficial visits). They are permitted 30 official pre-draft visits and an unlimited amount of unofficial visits: