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Pittsburgh Steelers 2019 Mock Draft: All defense in opening rounds

By Noah Strackbein

LINCOLN, NE - SEPTEMBER 10: Defensive end Carl Granderson #91 of the Wyoming Cowboys celebrates a stop against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on September 10, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Nebraska defeated Wyoming 52-14. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
LINCOLN, NE - SEPTEMBER 10: Defensive end Carl Granderson #91 of the Wyoming Cowboys celebrates a stop against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on September 10, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Nebraska defeated Wyoming 52-14. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /
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DURHAM, NC – SEPTEMBER 16: Mark Gilbert #28 of the Duke Blue Devils breaks up a pass intended for Denzel Mims #15 of the Baylor Bears during the game at Wallace Wade Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NC – SEPTEMBER 16: Mark Gilbert #28 of the Duke Blue Devils breaks up a pass intended for Denzel Mims #15 of the Baylor Bears during the game at Wallace Wade Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

Round 6-2: Mark Gilbert, CB, Duke

*Written by Noah Strackbein*

The Steelers added a cornerback in the opening round of the 2019 NFL Draft and they’ll follow it up with another later in the sixth round. You can’t expect Artie Burns to be there following the season and with Coty Sensabaugh’s contract expiring, Pittsburgh will lose two corners in the offseason.

Brian Allen has made strides since being draft and will likely take on a bigger role in 2019, but without any certainty of how far he’s come. Pittsburgh will need another option to compete for time.

Mark Gilbert out of Duke is a smaller corner with strong ball skills. He’ll need to add some weight and develop more as a tackler once in the league, but he contains the coverage skills to stand a decent chance at the pro level.

With the amount of corners in this year’s draft class, Gilbert will slide to the later rounds. When he’s sitting there at the bottom of the sixth, the Steelers will glad to add another weapon to their secondary.

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