Ray Fittipaldo: Steelers have to hope Jamel Dean breaks cornerback cold streak

Ray Fittipaldo, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Mar 12, 2026

Published in Football

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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers’ inability to draft and develop corners has been well-documented over the years. Until they selected Joey Porter Jr. in the second round of the 2023 draft, their handling of the position left a lot to be desired.

Draft misses forced the Steelers to try to find their starters in free agency or in trades. It’s seemingly been one failed acquisition after another.

There was Darius Slay, Donte Jackson, Patrick Peterson, Levi Wallace, Ahkello Witherspoon and the return of Cam Sutton, who came back to the team one year after he left in free agency. We’ll leave Jalen Ramsey out of the discussion for the moment because he remains on the roster.

All except Witherspoon and Jackson, who came via low-cost trades, were signed in free agency. To be blunt, it was not money well spent.

The Steelers were gambling Peterson and Slay could rekindle some of the old magic from their primes, but they were wrong.

Slay signed a one-year deal for $10 million and was cut in early December. Peterson signed a two-year, $14 million deal and was cut after one season.

The others came on lesser deals but produced similar results. Jackson led the Steelers in interceptions in 2024, but the Steelers let him walk in free agency and signed Slay instead. Wallace and Witherspoon lasted two seasons before the Steelers moved on from them, and Sutton’s return only lasted one season.

General manager Omar Khan and first-year coach Mike McCarthy went in a different direction by signing former Tampa Bay cornerback Jamel Dean to a three-year, $36.75 million contract. It’s the richest free agent contract ever handed out to a Steelers defensive back, and it’s the first three-year deal for a defensive back since 2019, when they signed Steven Nelson to a three-year deal.

Nelson, by the way, only played two seasons before he was cut. Do you notice a theme here?

The Steelers are hoping Dean can put an end to the revolving door at the position and bring some stability to the secondary. Unlike the others, Dean comes onboard after his best season in Tampa Bay.

He’s 29 and has a bit of an injury history, but he’s coming to the Steelers on an ascent rather than a descent. Dean’s 63.1 opposing quarterback rating and his opponent completion percentage (.490) were the second-best marks of his career, and he had a career-high three interceptions.

His Pro Football Focus grade of 80.6 last season was the best of his career, and he’s been a well-regarded player by PFF since he entered the league, scoring a 71.8 grade or higher in each of his seven seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Steelers desperately needed someone to bolster the unit. They gave up 244 passing yards per game last season. Only the Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys gave up more.

There were reasons for that, of course. In addition to Slay, the Steelers also signed veteran Juan Thornhill to be their free safety. He didn’t last as long as Slay, getting cut in November. That triggered some movement in the secondary, with Ramsey moving from corner to safety. And DeShon Elliott’s season-ending knee injury surely didn’t help matters.

So Khan took another swing at fixing the secondary. Four of the five starters are set. Dean and Porter will man the corners, and Elliott and Ramsey are penciled into the lineup, as well. Elliott will resume his role as strong safety, but Ramsey’s role has yet to be defined. He’ll start at either slot corner or free safety again.

That gives Khan some options in the draft. He can draft a safety and a slot corner in the first few rounds in hopes one of them becomes a contributor as a rookie. If not, Brandin Echols and Darnell Savage, who agreed to terms late Tuesday, could be more involved.

Khan shouldn’t close the door on selecting an outside corner, either. Porter is a candidate for an extension this summer, but if that does not happen, he’ll be a free agent this time next year. And Dean turns 30 in October. It’s never too early to develop a potential replacement for him.

The Steelers won’t know for some time if Dean ranks better than his predecessors, but this acquisition does have a different feel. After years of settling for stop-gap answers on cheaper contracts, the Steelers made a financial commitment they hope will pay dividends into the future.

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