Do the Steelers have a single cornerback worthy of a starting job in 2022?
By Tommy Jaggi
The cornerback situation in Pittsburgh is not looking great. Do the Steelers have a single CB who is currently worthy of a starting job next season?
One of the positions that I had major concerns with prior to the start of the 2021 season was cornerback. After losing both Steven Nelson and Mike Hilton this past offseason, it stood to reason that this team was going to go through some growing pains.
Unfortunately, the results this year have been even worse than what most expected. In addition to very few big plays being made in the secondary, Pittsburgh’s cornerbacks have struggled across the board with consistency in coverage.
With a few rare expectations, most of this group has really struggled this year. In fact, Steelers cornerbacks have not fared well at all when it comes to their passer ratings surrendered this year, according to advanced statistics from Pro Football Reference.
Regardless, it hasn’t been all bad. It’s great to see Ahkello Witherspoon really come on strong for the Steelers as of late. For much of the season, it was looking like Pittsburgh made a really bad trade by sending a fifth-round pick to Seattle for Witherspoon’s services.
Though Witherspoon is set to become an unrestricted free agent this coming offseason, he’s certainly starting to outplay his draft status, and the team will have a decision to make on whether or not they try to retain him on a rich new deal.
Sadly, the rest of this group is looking pretty poor. Will the Steelers have any cornerbacks worthy of a starting role in 2022?
Steelers have one CB deserving of a starting spot in 2022
Joe Haden is the veteran leader of this squad, but the former Pro Bowl cornerback has seen his best days. In addition, Haden hinted that this would be his final year in Pittsburgh after the team rejected a contract extension his agent tried to get done just before the season.
Though Haden is their most consistent option, even he is not guaranteed to start on another squad next season due to his age, recent injuries that have held him out, and his lack of long speed late in his career.
Meanwhile, Cameron Sutton has been one of the biggest disappointments on the team this year after a very promising 2020 campaign as a dime defender. He proved that he is not the same player in a much larger role, and the team would no doubt benefit from moving him back to a situational cornerback.
Likewise, Justin Layne has rarely seen the field on defense this year, while James Pierre was benched for Witherspoon after a few really bad games in the middle of the 2021 season. His athletic limitations were on full display as he was routinely beaten down the field. In addition, Arthur Maulet is no more than a low-end slot cornerback and Tre Norwood — who plays a hybrid defensive back role for the Steelers — struggled in coverage as a rookie.
When you really break down this group and consider the performances we saw in 2021 and the upside, there is just one player who deserves to be a starter for this team next year: Ahkello Witherspoon. After hardly being able to earn a helmet early in the year, Witherspoon has come on strong, but he needs to keep this momentum going through the end of the season if the Steelers are to consider giving him a contract extension.
Pittsburgh is far from set at the cornerback position, and they will no doubt be forced to look for some outside help in free agency and the NFL Draft in 2022. Let’s hope they can fix their pass-coverage woes and find at least one more player who is truly worthy of being a starting cornerback on this team.