Sutton’s suspension reopens the battle for the Steelers’ slot corner

Steelers corner Cam Sutton’s suspension should come as no surprise. It was less of a question of “if” than “how long,” as the league settled on eight games. Sutton will not appeal, meaning the ruling stands and he will not play for the Pittsburgh Steelers until Week 10, after the club had a bye in Week 9.

Now that it’s official, the Steelers are back to square one, led by an obvious question.

Who in the world is the Steelers slot corner?

That was the open question before Sutton was signed. Until he returns, the Steelers will have to find someone or several players to fill the gap. Last year’s duo of Chandon Sullivan and Patrick Peterson remain free agents. The team may reconsider. But they will likely start with those already on the roster.

We can divide the option into two groups: the young guns and the veterans. The young guns include undrafted rookies Beanie Bishop Jr. and Thomas Graham Jr., and the veterans include Josiah Scott and Grayland Arnold.

Bishop will be the most eye-catching prospect this summer. An All-American in 2023, he played a lot as an outside corner at West Virginia, but lacked the size to kick in the slot. Our scouting report gave him a draft grade, albeit with mixed results:

“Beanie Bishop Jr. was a very entertaining but frustrating player to watch on film. He has so many signs of incredible awareness, competitiveness and playmaking ability. But he also has puzzling situations where he falls way behind and allows big plays more often than you would expect from a player with his instincts.”

Our report praised his ball production, intercepting 20 passes in 2023 and catching four more, as well as his tenacity in stopping the run. On the negative side, he was too aggressive, got penalized too often, and was constantly burning down the field. Despite his weaknesses and UDFA status, he will likely be given a real chance to get the job.

Graham will have a tougher road. He’s older and was drafted in 2021, so he has little NFL experience, but he didn’t play a single snap last year. Defensive backs coach Grady Brown mentioned that Graham was getting more playing time before Sutton was signed. However, since Sutton should be eligible this preseason, Graham’s window for snaps is small.

Scott spent part of last season on the Steelers’ practice squad. A former Philadelphia Eagle, he was the team’s slot corner in 2022, appearing in 16 games and starting four times. He was effective with two interceptions and two tackles for loss. Playing time in 2023 was harder to come by, as he only played in four games and saw 17 total defensive snaps.

Arnold was signed around the same time as Sutton. Arnold, a name Pittsburgh was eyeing in 2023, played primarily in the slot for the Houston Texans. His production was underwhelming, 18 tackles in eight games, but he easily played more snaps than anyone else on the roster last season. That’s important.

Ideally, the Steelers will choose one of the four names. But unless someone steps up and stands out, the team could fall back on what it’s done so far. A committee approach with two slot corners. One is for run downs and the other for pass downs. That’s how Arthur Maulet and Cam Sutton worked in 2022, and that’s how Sullivan and Peterson coexisted in 2023 (until injuries forced Peterson to play safety). Maybe Bishop will be the run down man, playing on first and second downs, while Scott plays on passing downs. Or some combination of the groups.

Pittsburgh will use this summer to evaluate the group. They should rotate every day, as they did to open camp last year. The first player to take slot snaps a year ago was Duke Dawson. At the time, Mike Tomlin warned to pay little attention to the camp “depth chart” because the process would work itself out. Dawson got injured midway through camp and was released. All of those names should get a chance. If Pittsburgh likes what they see, they’ll pick winners. If not, they could look externally for a Peterson, a Sullivan or another name that becomes available in a trade or on cuts.

Since losing Mike Hilton, the Steelers have yet to find a good answer at the slot. Each summer has brought the same questions, the same confusion, and the same uncertainty. Unless Pittsburgh makes an effort to invest meaningfully in the cornerback position, they will continue down this foggy road.