Jackson finds his slice of 'heaven' with fresh start with Steelers

In his six seasons in Carolina, Donte Jackson did not experience winning too often. The Panthers finished below .500 in each season, and that includes a dreadful 2-15 mark to notch the NFL's worst record by two games in 2023. Over that same stretch, the Steelers never won fewer than eight games and made three postseason appearances. 

The Steelers traded Diontae Johnson for the 28-year-old cornerback in mid-March, affording Jackson a fresh start away from the only organization he had ever known as a pro. As he said after Thursday's OTA practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, the change of scenery has been exactly what he has been waiting to experience.

"I've been loving it, man. For any real football guys this is heaven, for real. I love it," Jackson said. "The attention to detail in not just the coaches but the players, everybody's obsessed with getting better. Not doing anything extra, just getting better. All the feedback you get from the guys, everybody's talking to each other. It's the place where football players come to be great and I like it. I think I'm fitting right in."

Jackson was selected with the 55th overall pick in the 2018 draft out of LSU. He was the sixth cornerback taken in a class that included the Browns' Denzel Ward and the Packers' Jaire Alexander, both selected in the first round. Jackson began his career on the right path with four interceptions to finish three off of the NFL lead as a rookie. He was productive as a tackler and blitzer, as well, as he posted 74 total tackles and four for loss that season.

Some of Jackson's production dipped amid injury concerns in the next two seasons, however, and the Panthers worked to improve that room in the 2021 draft by selecting Jaycee Horn with the eighth overall pick. That put some writing on the wall for Jackson, who was defaulted to a different position with the rookie assuming top duties at cornerback.

He played in 12 games in 2021 and nine games in 2022 before re-establishing as a solid tackler in 2023. His 59 tackles and five for loss were his highest marks since 2021. He brings a physical skillset at 5-foot-10 to match the identity of the Steelers' defense, but he won't have to worry about roaming in the box as much here in Pittsburgh with Minkah Fitzpatrick's ability to play on all three levels of the field.

"You've got so many great players here," Jackson said. "T.J. Watt, you see him here every day, you see him putting work in. You see Minkah put the work in. You see (Russell Wilson), you see all these guys, man, it gives you a lot more confidence in yourself. You see coach (Mike Tomlin) and the energy that he walks around the building with and (Teryl Austin) and those guys. For me being my seventh year, being in one place and only, really, one way to do it, coming in here just seeing how it's done at a championship level, it's been great."

Consider this a fresh start for Jackson, who comes in without having to live up to superstar expectations. 

"That's the way I'm looking at it," Jackson said. "I'm grateful for everything that I've been through in Carolina and everything that happened in Carolina. I have nothing but the utmost respect and love for that organization forever. I'm looking at this as a fresh start for me. I know a lot of these fans haven't really watched a lot of me. They're probably not familiar with the way I play ball, but there's a reason I've been in the league for all this time starting and playing at a high level and I'm excited to do that in front of such a passionate fanbase and in front of the world because a lot of people watch the Steelers." 

Jackson takes over for Levi Wallace, who joined the Broncos in free agency. The Steelers' front office has worked to build up the cornerbacks room over the last two offseasons by drafting Joey Porter Jr. in the second round and Cory Trice Jr. in the seventh round last year and by adding Ryan Watts in the sixth round this year. 

He is the second-oldest cornerback on the roster behind the recently signed Anthony Averett, and he gets to join the young guys in the room on this journey of growth together.

"Just their infatuation with football," Jackson said. "These guys here, it's like they've already been molded into asking questions and to take notes and to be coachable. That's the best thing as a young guy. You just want to come in with big eyes, big ears, little mouth. Don't talk as much. See as much as you can. Listen as much as you can. That's the one thing that you see a lot from these young guys."