The Steelers' acquisition of Justin Gilbert involved very little risk in that they traded a sixth-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft for one who was No. 8 overall in 2014, and he's exactly the kind of speedy cover corner that's sorely needed.
Gilbert earned the reputation as the best corner of his draft with five interceptions in his final season at Oklahoma State plus a great combine performance. Pairing his 4.37 seconds time in the 40-yard dash with 20 repetitions on the bench press -- both the best of the class at his position -- he was viewed almost universally as a top-10 pick.
With the Browns, though, he quickly became a bust.
Some of that was for issues off the field, but the bigger problem was that Cleveland could never find a way to convert that athleticism into consistent contributions on defense. Deep into his two NFL seasons, he was still making key mistakes and displaying a lack of fundamentals.
This film room session makes use of the limited NFL tape available of Gilbert for our readers to see the challenge that Carnell Lake and the Steelers face:
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