The 2016 NFL draft will always be the one we remember where the Pittsburgh Steelers got played by the Cincinnati Bengals. It was clear the Pittsburgh Steelers wanted former Houston cornerback William Jackson III, but when the Bengals went up and poached him, the Steelers were forced to settle for former Miami cornerback Artie Burns Jr.
Burns ended up being a bust as a player, while Jackson was better but hardly an elite cornerback during his career. He did have one elite season and three others that were better than anything Burns ever did. So when Pro Football Focus did a full redraft of the first round of the 2016 NFL draft based on their grades, neither Burns nor Jackson made the cut.
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Instead of either guy, PFF went with cornerback James Bradberry for the Steelers. Something of an odd pick given his grades are very much comparable to what Jackson did during his career, with some very good seasons and some very average ones.
Given the Steelers went with safety Sean Davis in the second round, who also turned out to be a very mediocre player, we probably would have rather seen safety Vonn Bell in the first round. Bell went No. 31 overall.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers land new CB in redraft of 2016 NFL draft