When the Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves on the clock in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, there are a number of different directions they can take with their pick.
The organization could take a center. They could draft an offensive tackle for the second consecutive year. They could do the same at cornerback.
The defensive line could maybe even be in play if the right guy falls to pick 20.
So far, a corner has been the most popular prediction for the Steelers, although there hasn’t been a consensus on which corner they should take.
Now two more mock drafts have projected a corner to the Steelers. The corner in both mocks was Alabama’s Kool-Aid McKinstry.
First it was SI’s Patrick Chiotti who had the Steelers selecting McKinstry in his January 19 mock.
Two days later, Steelers Nation’s Parker Abate revealed that he was expecting the same pick in his mock draft for just the Steelers.
McKinstry was a standout for Alabama and is expected to join a long list of Crimson Tide defensive backs in the NFL.
Another Star Defensive Back for Alabama
Star defensive backs are nothing new for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
They’ve had 9 defensive backs selected in the first two rounds over the last 10 NFL Drafts.
One of those is Minkah Fitzpatrick, who just made his fourth Pro Bowl as a member of the Steelers.
Heading into the 2024 draft, they actually have two corners that will likely join that list.
McKinstry and Terrion Arnold are both projected to come off the board in the first 25 picks.
Of the two, Arnold has the more impressive stats, but McKinstry could be a perfect fit for the Steelers’ defense to pair with Joey Porter Jr. at corner.
McKinstry only had two interceptions over the course of his three years, but he was very good in coverage.
Against a tough SEC schedule, McKinstry only allowed 19 catches for 205 yards on 39 targets in 14 games in 2023.
He has a great combination of size and speed that should allow him to continue to be a nuisance to opposing receivers when he makes the jump to the NFL.
While he didn’t put any interceptions on the board, he could be very valuable in Pittsburgh without them.
Him and Porter Jr. would make it difficult for opposing receivers to find openings, giving the team’s talented pass rush time to get to the quarterback.
Alabama and the SEC as a whole have sent a lot of defensive backs to the NFL that went on to have good careers.
McKinstry could be the next.
A Steelers Secondary That Still Needs Help
The Steelers started to address their needs at corner during the 2023 offseason when they drafted Porter Jr. with the first pick in the second round.
They also signed Patrick Peterson to occupy the other corner spot, but now it looks like he could spend the rest of his career as a nickel corner or a safety and the rest of that career might not be with the Steelers.
Even with Peterson on the roster and Porter Jr. excelling as a rookie, the team’s pass defense still wasn’t great this past season.
They allowed the league’s 10th-most yards per attempt on pass plays in 2023 despite their schedule featuring seven quarterbacks who weren’t their team’s starter in Week 1.
That has led to the team now being linked to a number of corners, including Iowa’s Cooper De Jean, Penn State’s Kalen King, Clemson’s Nate Wiggins, and McKinstry.
Whoever it is they land on, the Steelers definitely need an upgrade opposite Porter Jr. in the secondary.
