5 free agents Steelers must sign to get team back on track

Steelers should sign Conley

One of the major disappointments for the Steelers so far has been the lackluster play of their cornerbacks. This group hasn’t been bad, but they have trended more to average as opposed to good. Joe Haden is his usual self-minus a bit of speed while Cameron Sutton has been solid as a starter. James Pierre has been a mixed bag, allowing quite a few catches but still flashing some coverage ability to warrant some hope.

The issue is, the depth chart behind those three is rather bare. The team tried to address this before the season by trading essentially a pair of fifth-round picks for Ahkello Witherspoon. To this point, that trade has been a huge bust, as Witherspoon has allowed a deep touchdown pass in the four total defensive snaps he has played. A veteran like Gareon Conley could better fill out this depth chart at this point.

Now, Conley has been far from an elite player so far in his career either. He has bounced from teams and has struggled as a full-time starter. He would be an upgrade as the fourth cornerback over Witherspoon though, and he would push Pierre for playing time. Again, this secondary hasn’t been a disaster, but the average play has to improve, especially with the offense struggling as much as it has.