Why UDFA Shakur Brown could make the Steelers roster in 2021

The Pittsburgh Steelers signed Michigan State CB Shakur Brown as a priority free agent following last weekend’s NFL draft.

The Steelers scoured the undrafted boards immediately following the draft’s conclusion last weekend and got themselves a dark horse to snag a roster spot in 2021. Brown plays a position the team all of a sudden finds themselves lacking depth at after a few years of stability.

After bringing back Cam Sutton in free agency, the Steelers saw Mike Hilton sign in Cincinnati and made a tough decision to make Steven Nelson a cap casualty before the draft. This decimated the depth at the position leaving just Joe Haden and Sutton having played many meaningful snaps in their careers.

The losses of Nelson and Hilton were compounded when third-year corner Justin Layne found himself in legal trouble. A 2020 undrafted signee, James Pierre, suddenly finds himself as the team’s likely third cornerback with little to no depth behind him with Layne’s future a bit murky.

Pierre was an undrafted free agent last season and showed the Steelers enough to make the team. This was especially impressive since there were no offseason workouts, preseason, or training camps.

Pierre had seemingly overtaken Layne in the pecking order by the conclusion of last season. His fast rise likely contributed to the Steelers’ decision to only bring back Cam Sutton.

The Steelers will likely have Haden and Sutton as their starters in base sets. Sub packages will see James Pierre come in opposite Haden and kick Sutton into the slot.

Shakur Brown can be the Steelers’ 2021, James Pierre

Brown was by no means a top prospect like Pat Surtain II, Asante Samuel Jr., or Jaycee Horn but he wasn’t expected to be a UDFA. The NFL site had him projected as a fourth-round pick and PFF’s big board had him ranked 156.

He has only one full year as a starter under his belt at Michigan State but he did enough for people to think he’d be drafted. In 2020, he tallied 5 interceptions and 4 pass deflections for the Spartans.

He has above-average instincts and athleticism which help him play with solid ball-tracking ability. He is also surprisingly strong in man and press coverage for being just 5’10” 185 pounds.

For comparison, Mike Hilton was 5’9″ 184 pounds coming out of the 2016 NFL draft. He was also a UDFA and found a way to become one of the best slot corners in the NFL and made himself a lot of money this offseason.

This is not to say Brown will turn out like Mike Hilton but, they are similar in size and play styles which will help him when trying to showcase himself to Mike Tomlin to make the team. He has a real chance to be the next UDFA to make the Steelers roster and provide quality depth and earn more playing time as the season progresses.