Steelers heavily involved with deep cornerback class at NFL Combine

INDIANAPOLIS -- Omar Khan and the Steelers' front office struck for one of the best rookie defenders in the 2023 NFL Draft when they selected Joey Porter Jr. 32nd overall.

If the staff's evaluation system utilized last year checks out, then this deep group of versatile cornerbacks should be enticing enough for them to consider with the 20th overall selection in this April's NFL Draft. The position remains one of need, and a pick used on one of eight ranked in Pro Football Focus' top 50 could set them up at the position for several years to come.

Among those who rank highly, Iowa's Cooper DeJean, Alabama's Terrion Arnold, Clemson's Nate Wiggins, and Alabama's Kool-Aid McKinstry all confirmed formal meetings with the Steelers at points this week in Indianapolis. The Steelers are not meeting with Toledo's Quinyon Mitchell here this week, but their relationship and strong interest took off at the Senior Bowl a month ago.

These are the top five consensus prospects at cornerback. The Steelers are involved in meeting with all of them. This position is absolutely in play come the first round of the draft on April 25.

"He's a player-first coach," Arnold said Thursday of his impressions of meeting Mike Tomlin. "He actually coached (Alabama's) defensive backs coach Travarius Robinson. So with that being said he's one of those guys, he does whatever's in the best interest of his players."

If not for the offensive line, the cornerback position is a common prognostication for the Steelers in the first round of the draft. The Steelers were in the bottom-half of the league in passing defense and their 23 passing touchdowns allowed were tied for 12th-most in the NFL. The secondary was susceptible to allowing big plays last season, as well, as their 63 completions of 20 or more yards were the fourth-most in the NFL.

Khan said Thursday that Porter's success won't necessarily be an influential factor of the profile of cornerback the Steelers scout here in Indianapolis.

"We're just trying to get as many good players as we can," Khan said. "Players come in different shapes and sizes. Some do 'this' good, some do 'that' good. We're just trying to get as many good players as we can."

Porter was valued in last year's draft as a physical cornerback who had length at 6-foot-2, 193 pounds at the time of the 2023 NFL Combine. Wiggins has the height at 6-foot-2, but has a listed weight of 185 pounds. McKinstry checks in at 6-1, 195 and would more closely fit the Porter prototype. 

Arnold has some familiarity to keep in mind, as he played the famed "star" position in Nick Saban's defense at Alabama. That's the same position Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick played in that same defense.

"Going to Alabama with me playing star, I used to watch Minkah's tape all the time," Arnold said. "Coach Saban, we had a thing called 'cut-ups,' so when we lit up the cut-ups, Minkah was on every single one of them."

According to the Mock Draft Database, Wiggins is the most-frequented cornerback picked by the Steelers on a consensus basis. The 20-year-old was a first-team All-ACC selection in 2022 and 2023 who gathered 22 pass defenses and three interceptions over those seasons.

Wiggins said teams are viewing him as an outside cornerback, for now, which makes sense given his natural length for the position.

"I set myself apart because I'm a lock-down corner," Wiggins said. "I'm very fast and I'm a technician, so that's why I think I'm the best corner in the draft because I can lock down one side of the field and completely take the receiver out of the game."

McKinstry won't test in drills in Indianapolis with a reported fracture in his right foot and is expected to be at 100% before training camp begins. So, whether that affects his draft stock remains to be seen, but otherwise he is going to be a top option among this class. DeJean will not test at the Combine after fracturing his fibula late in the season, but expects to work out for teams before the draft.

The Steelers have also formally met with Georgia's Kamari Lassiter, Missouri's Ennis Rakestraw Jr., Michigan's Mike Sainristil, and Rutgers' Max Melton here in Indianapolis, bringing the total number of formal meetings with cornerbacks to eight. The Steelers have also formally met with a pair of safeties in Indianapolis: USC's Calen Bullock and Minnesota's Tyler Nubin. Safeties who confirmed informal meetings with the Steelers include Utah's Sione Vaki, Georgia's Javon Bullard, Georgia's Tykee Smith, Miami's James Williams, and Washington's Dom Hampton.

Among cornerbacks who have formally met with the Steelers, Melton is the lowest-ranked prospect on PFF's big board at 112th overall. These formal meetings serve as a further indication of the Steelers' early-round interest in the position.

"Just very instinctual," Sainristil said of his playing style. "Just being somebody who knows how to find the football whether it's in the air, on the ground."

Sainristil began his career at Michigan as a wide receiver but converted to a full-time defensive back prior to the 2022 season. He said he loved watching former Steelers Santonio Holmes, Antonio Brown, and Troy Polamalu when he was growing up. Now, he's honing his skills to be more like Mike Hilton. That is a major comparison he has drawn, and he has embraced that by modeling his game after the former Steelers slot cornerback. Sainristil has drawn draft projections for Day 2, in the second and third rounds.

"I think I had to stop myself from trying to find the ball too much in terms of in coverage and I'm still continuing to work on eye discipline," Sainristil said. "I think my instincts and my natural ability to be around the football is what helps me to play how I play at the nickel position."