When the Steelers made the decision to keep Cam Sutton as a free agent, it cased some other dominoes to fall.
That meant they weren't capable of paying Mike Hilton in free agency. He instead signed with the Bengals. And it also led to the release of Steven Nelson, as well, in a move to free up a starting spot for Sutton on the outside while creating additional salary cap space.
The idea was that Sutton, now heading into his fifth season, was ready to take on a larger role with the team. What that role might be and where it might be, however, remain to be seen.
As the Steelers continue to hold their minicamp here at Heinz Field, Sutton has continued to play on the outside in Nelson's former spot opposite veteran Joe Haden.
The slot, a role Sutton shared in the past with Hilton, has been a rotation of players, including second-year safety Antoine Brooks, veteran free agent signing Arthur Maulet, rookie Trey Norwood and rookie Shakur Brown, an undrafted free agent, as the Steelers take a good long look at what they have at the position.
"The way I’m looking at it is that I know Cam can play inside," defensive secondary coach Teryl Austin said Wednesday. "So, right now, he is working outside, and we’re letting these other guys work inside to see what we have. I think that’s the proper way to do it, to give them an opportunity to learn and see where they can go inside.
"If we don’t feel real comfortable with what we have, then we would address changes at that time. But I know that Cam would not need a lot of reps if he had to move inside."
Whether or not that needs to happen or what needs to happen will depend largely on how the entire puzzle fits together. Backing Haden and Sutton up on the outside right now are young corners second-year player James Pierre and 2019 third-round pick Justin Layne. Both saw their first action on the defense last season and are competing strictly as outside cornerbacks.
But the team also feels more comfortable with what it has there given their experience.
That went into the decision to release Nelson, who had been the starter opposite Haden the previous two seasons.
Haden, now 32, said he was surprised by the team's decision to release Nelson, but understood it.
"It’s a business thing. I think it had a lot to do with cap numbers," Haden said. "Me and him are both older players and we both had one year left on our deals. The salary cap being what it was, it was a business decision. It sucks."
But it also created opportunities.
And in that regard, Haden is optimistic.
"It’s going to make a lot of opportunities for guys like Antoine Brooks, for Justin Layne, for James Pierre. These dudes are going to have opportunities to step in there and make significant jumps in their careers," Haden said. "Signing Cam Sutton, he’s going to be able to thrive out there at outside corner. He’s a great nickel and outside. I think he’s going to be able to be a starter on a lot of NFL team regardless. I think it’s good we were able to keep him and he’s going to be a solid corner, starter in the league.
"Just that nickel position, being able to figure that out, and having options with Justin Layne and James Pierre, those dudes are really capable."
It's a puzzle Austin needs to figure out between now and when the Steelers line up Sept. 12 to play the Bills in Buffalo.
He likes the fact that even though Hilton and Nelson are gone and both logged a lot of snaps over the previous couple of seasons, he's got the other three regular starters in the secondary -- Haden and safeties Minkah Fitzpatrick and Terrell Edmunds -- back. Add Sutton, who has been the team's jack of all trades, into the equation, and the reality is that the Steelers will only truly have one new starter in the secondary.
"I know we lost two guys, but when you think about it, we have Joe, Minkah and TE that will be playing their third year together," Austin said. "I think that’s super important. Anybody new that comes into the secondary, they’ll get help from those guys. Obviously, you also have Cam. That veteran leadership is really important when you have turnover. They help the new guys understand the expectations of the meetings, of the practice, of the position they play and what it means to play defense here in Pittsburgh."
The expectations will be big for whoever that player might be. And there also figures to be a target on the new guy as is often the case.
If the Steelers wind up keeping Sutton on the outside and using a different nickel corner, it could be because that player's abilities most closely resemble those of Hilton, an excellent blitzer who had 9.5 sacks in his four seasons with the team.
"Part of it is who Mike is. But I think that is important for our defense," Austin said when asked if blitzing is important to that position. "That guy has got to be part corner, part linebacker. If he’s not a good blitzer, that limits you on some of the things you can do. We’re hoping the person who winds up in there has some of the ability. We know he won’t be Mike, but has the ability to do those similar things."
That could mean Brooks, a college safety listed at 5-foot-11 and 220 pounds but obviously slimmed down this year, could be in the mix there. He had four interceptions and 3.5 sacks in his final three seasons at Maryland before the Steelers selected him in the sixth round of last year's draft. He saw a handful of snaps in the slot last season, but could see more in 2021.
"He is an option. That’s where he is working," Austin said. "That’s really where he played at Maryland. He was listed as a safety, but he basically played a slot nickel position. And he was very productive there. That’s where he has been working, but he’s still got a ways to go. I think the progress is coming. I think it’s important that we did have an offseason. That will give him an opportunity to win a job in there."
The opportunity is there. How it all meshes out over the coming weeks will be interesting to watch.
But the Steelers haven't made any final decisions. They want to leave their options open.
"That nickel spot, everybody thinks it’s pretty easy because you’re just an inside corner," Austin said. "You’re basically a combination of a linebacker and corner. You’ve got to be strong in the run. You’ve got to be a good blitzer. But you’ve also got to be able to cover slot receivers, the Jarvis Landrys of the world. That takes a different skillset and a lot of learning in there. More so than leaving Cam (outside), I need to find out what the other guys can do and what they can learn. That’s really the biggest issue. I feel comfortable because Cam has been in this system for four years."