Steelers Have New Favorite at CB

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed their starting slot cornerback, for now.

Oct 17, 2021; Baltimore, Maryland, USA;Baltimore Ravens cornerback Anthony Averett (23) celebrates a / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers added a veteran to their cornerback room in a way not many expected. After trying out at rookie minicamp, the team inked Anthony Averett to a one-year deal. And now, the former Baltimore Raven seems to be in line to start.

Heading into the offseason, the team was believed to look outward for a slot cornerback. After the NFL Draft, it appeared undrafted rookie Beanie Bishop was somehow going to slide into the starting role without any competition. Then, the team added Averett to the roster, and things changed.

There's no guarantee Averett wins the starting job or even makes the 53-man roster. He hasn't played a regular season game since 2022 and last time he was on the field, dealt with injuries. But with Darius Rush and Bishop as the leading competitors around him, it's hard to imagine he doesn't head into Week 1 as the team's starting slot.

Now, he's the "favorite" and not a "lock" because anything can happen. That includes signing a player like Cam Sutton. If the team is still interested in bringing back their former starter, it likely removes Averett as the CB1 on the inside. It doesn't rule out him making the team as a depth piece, though.

Sutton remains a free agent, right now, which keeps Averett as the guy for Pittsburgh. That may not change. And despite plenty of excitement about what Bishop could do during his career with the Steelers, there's better odds a player with 27 career starts is able to make a higher contribution to the defense in 2024 than an undrafted rookie.

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