Steelers mock draft: Pittsburgh reaches to fill biggest needs

Steelers mock draft round 3: CB Coby Bryant

The Steelers might like to go with a safety here, but I think they will have Coby Bryant higher than the remaining safeties on their board. Byrant just feels like a Steeler to me. The Cincinnati cornerback is just a very average athlete by NFL standards (4.54 speed), but he’s good at the things that are important to Pittsburgh.

Bryant is sticky in coverage and physical in run support. These two traits will make it possible for defensive coordinator Teryl Austin to find a role for him early in his career. Bryant and future top-10 pick, Ahmad Gardner, combined to form the most lethal cornerback duo in the nation last season and were a large reason why the Bearcats’ defense was so successful in 2021.

Entering the NFL Draft after his fifth college season, Bryant is an older prospect, but the Steelers won’t care too much about that in the third round. However, his career interceptions and 35 pass defenses will be very intriguing to a team hoping to get deeper at the CB position.

Bryant would begin his career as the team’s number four cornerback and likely find some sub-package work early on before eventually getting a chance to climb up the depth chart. If all goes well, he projects as a mid-level CB2 in Pittsburgh.