The Pittsburgh Steelers tried to make adding cornerback depth a priority over the last couple offseason. But Bleacher Report’s NFL Scouting Department still argued on September 2 that the Steelers should make one more addition to the cornerback room — Xavien Howard.
Bleacher Report named Howard the “add now” the Steelers should make ahead of 2024 NFL season opener.
“This is a team that is going to win games with defense and the lack of depth in the defensive backfield is downright scary,” wrote the BR NFL Scouting Department. “Joey Porter Jr. is a promising starter after a good rookie year. They traded for Donte Jackson to be the other outside corner and Beanie Bishop Jr. has stood out in camp in the slot.
“After that, it’s Darius Rush and Cory Trice Jr. on the active roster. Xavien Howard is the best cornerback available. They’d have to kick someone inside to form a new starting trio, but it would be a drastic improvement over what they have.”
Howard made first-team All-Pro when he led the NFL with 10 interceptions in 2020. He also led the league in interceptions with 7 during the 2018 season. That year, he made his first Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro.
In addition to 2018, Howard earned three consecutive Pro Bowl nominations from 2020-22. Last season, he recorded 45 combined tackles, 12 pass defenses and 1 interception in 13 games.
Howard signed a 5-year, $90 million contract extension with the Miami Dolphins on April 1, 2022. But Miami released Howard on March 13 to save salary cap space.
The 31-year-old cornerback has only played for the Dolphins in his NFL career.
How CB Xavien Howard Could Fit With the Steelers
With the Dolphins, Howard became one of the best cornerbacks in the league after the team drafted him in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. Howard started six games as a rookie and then became a regular starter in 2017.
He grew into an interception machine during his tenure with the Dolphins. Howard recorded four seasons with at least 4 interceptions from 2017-21.
Overall, he had 27 interceptions in 65 games during that five-year span. He returned 2 of those interceptions for touchdowns.
Howard has only had 2 interceptions in his last 28 starts. But he could offer the Steelers an upgrade at cornerback. Second-year cornerback Joey Porter Jr. is a rising star in the league, but the Steelers have questions beyond that at cornerback.
At the very least, Howard could add veteran experience to a young Steelers cornerback group. In free agency, Pittsburgh lost cornerbacks Patrick Peterson, Levi Wallace and Chandon Sullivan from its 2023 roster.
Steelers CB Depth Heading Into Week 1
Pundits are pretty confident that Porter is ready to become a shutdown cornerback for the Steelers this fall. Veteran Donte Jackson is set to start opposite Porter, but he faces more uncertainty entering the season.
The Steelers acquired Jackson in a trade from the Carolina Panthers for wide receiver Diontae Johnson. From Pittsburgh’s perspective, the trade was met with very mixed reviews.
As Bleacher Report explained, there’s more uncertainty behind Porter and Jackson. Darius Rush and Cory Trice Jr. are set to be the team’s No. 3 and 4 outside cornerbacks, but the pair have only played in three combined NFL games.
In the slot, Cameron Sutton will serve an eight-game suspension to begin the season. That means undrafted rookie Beanie Bishop Jr. will likely start at nickel cornerback.
If the Steelers signed Howard, they could eventually push Jackson into more of a reserve role. That’s not likely to happen, especially right away, but Howard’s presence would prevent Bishop from playing with another unproven player (Rush or Trice) in dime packages.
The Steelers secondary is likely to be tested in Week 1. They will open the season on the road against Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons.
