In the ever-evolving world of the NFL, offenses are constantly trying to find new ways to trick a defense and vice versa. It's been a tenet of the game since the first time a team attempted a forward pass.
To combat the differing offensive approaches around the league now, the Steelers have been very cognizant of the kind of players they've added in recent years, bringing in hybrid players capable of doing a variety of jobs or playing multiple positions.
Nowhere is that more evident than in their secondary.
The Steelers list Mike Hilton and Cam Sutton as their two nickel cornerbacks on their depth chart. But they've also unveiled a nickel package -- one with five defensive backs on the field -- in the preseason that includes three safeties. That third safety has been first-year player Kameron Kelly, a refugee from the now-defunct AAF.
At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, Kelly couldn't be more different physically than the 5-foot-9 Hilton or 5-foot-11 Sutton.
"(It's) just to get the better matchups," Steelers defensive backs coach Tom Bradley told me. "As we started to evaluate it, there are times when you want to be in the nickel but because you don’t want to get into a mismatch with a big tight end or one in which they’re not comfortable with what they’re doing, this gives us an opportunity to get our personnel the way we want to get it."
It used to be pretty standard that the opposing team's slot receiver was going to be a little, shifty player. Now, some teams -- including the Steelers -- are putting a big receiver in the slot to get a size or speed mismatch. Think JuJu Smith-Schuster, Keenan Allen, Julio Jones or A.J. Green, all of who line up in the slot as often as they do on the outside.
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