{"id":869771,"date":"2026-04-19T08:51:54","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T08:51:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/869771\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T08:51:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T08:51:54","slug":"it-starts-with-your-division-strong-cornerback-group-excites-dc-patrick-graham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/869771\/","title":{"rendered":"‘It Starts With Your Division:’ Strong Cornerback Group Excites DC Patrick Graham"},"content":{"rendered":"

In today\u2019s NFL, each division can feel like an arms race in constructing a roster to counter the opponent strengths. Six games each season against the same opponents, it makes sense to formulate a lineup based on the principle of winning those crucial matchups. If \u201cstyles make fights\u201d rings true,\u00a0 then the AFC North\u2019s physical style is sure to factor into roster decisions and game plans for the Pittsburgh Steelers. When it comes to cornerback play, Steelers defensive coordinator Patrick Graham is leaning into the hard-nosed nature of his starters and using it as a plus.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys know this better than I do, but first it starts with your division,\u201d Graham said via a team-provided transcript. \u201cSo, if you\u2019re talking about a division where teams run the ball and have big receivers, it\u2019s good business for our division. Whether you\u2019re talking about Cincinnati, you\u2019re talking about Baltimore, or you\u2019re talking about Cleveland, in terms of whether I\u2019m talking about the receivers, the run game, that\u2019s what our division is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

The physicality of the Steelers-Ravens rivalry<\/a> is well documented and needs no introduction, even to a newcomer like Graham. The Ravens have built their offense around the running game and look to maul their opponents into submission with each carry. The physicality of the AFC North isn\u2019t just limited to the run game, however. Even as a pass-happy offense, the Bengals\u2019 receivers tormented the Steelers secondary last season and on many occasions, opposing receivers reminded Pittsburgh of the importance of sound tackling, especially in the secondary.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter what we talk about, the spread, run game, the spread pass game, when it gets down to January, and in this division every week, it comes down to the physicality of the game, and you have to establish that. So, when you have corners that can tackle, that\u2019s a bonus.\u201d<\/p>\n

This offseason, the Steelers signed Jamel Dean as a free agent to compliment Joey Porter Jr. as an outside corner. Last season was an adventure at the cornerback position with Jalen Ramsey moving to safety during the season and Darius Slay not even making it through the season before being released. If the Steelers can find some level of stability with Porter and Dean starting, the rest of the defense will benefit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we talk about the run game in the League, the ball is trying to bounce out to the corner,\u201d Graham said. \u201cI mean, that\u2019s the number one play everybody\u2019s doing. Block them all up, block all the big guys, bounce out the corner. We\u2019ve got two corners right now that, on tape, they\u2019ve shown they\u2019ll tackle that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Behind Porter and Dean on the depth chart will be some combination of Asante Samuel Jr and Brandin Echols with Ramsey likely filling in at nickel in certain situations. Graham shared that he was impressed with Echols<\/a>, who played a role in the nickel in 2025. How the Steelers end up using Ramsey in 2026 will likely have a ripple effect on the rest of their secondary and players like Echols will need to assert themselves in the lineup under the new coaching staff. If Ramsey\u2019s versatility is utilized and he plays in different spots on the defense depending on the game, a player like Echols becomes even more valuable.<\/p>\n

The Steelers also figure to add to the position during the draft and if Graham\u2019s comments are any indication, any cornerback that Pittsburgh drafts will need to be a strong tackler and play a physical style.<\/p>\n

In a division where it\u2019s important to stop both the pass and the run, the secondary is one of the key inflection points for a Steelers defense that is looking to improve on last season. If the secondary can become a strength for this defense, there\u2019s no reason to think they can\u2019t compete in the AFC North once again in 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In today\u2019s NFL, each division can feel like an arms race in constructing a roster to counter the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":816587,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2055],"tags":[12009,7,1815,7343,7582,6,14269,520,57,2360,426],"class_list":{"0":"post-869771","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-pittsburgh-steelers","8":"tag-brandin-echols","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-jalen-ramsey","11":"tag-jamel-dean","12":"tag-joey-porter-jr","13":"tag-nfl","14":"tag-patrick-graham","15":"tag-pittsburgh","16":"tag-pittsburgh-steelers","17":"tag-pittsburghsteelers","18":"tag-steelers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116430524211227799","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=869771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869771\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/816587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=869771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=869771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=869771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}