The 2017 NFL Draft was a big one for the Steelers, getting T.J. Watt in the first round, JuJu Smith-Schuster in the second, and James Conner with a compensatory pick in the third.
All three were voted to the Pro Bowl in 2018 and figure in the team's plans for years to come.
Now another player from that draft class has been working his way into the conversation as a foundational player, as Cameron Sutton, the player selected in the third round between Smith-Schuster and Conner, has put together his best season in 2019.
The third-year cornerback has just seven tackles, but he's recorded an interception and team-high five pass breakups. Those numbers might sound kind of mediocre until you realize he's played just 106 defensive snaps -- 24.4 percent of the team's defensive snaps all season.
That snap count could increase as the Steelers (2-4) come out of their bye week and prepare for the stretch run, which starts Monday night at Heinz Field against the Dolphins (0-6). After all, when you've been as productive as Sutton has, it catches the eye of the coaching staff and teammates.
"It’s just the natural maturation process of a player in an environment. He did a lot at Tennessee in terms of multi-positional things. Safety. Corner. Inside and outside," Mike Tomlin said of Sutton. "We had an opportunity to have a real good classroom session with him the night before his pro day, and Kevin Colbert and myself walked out of there saying that guy is really sharp and he’s going to be able to play multiple positions and be able to do a lot of things, and I think his journey to this point has proven that to be true."
That position flexibility, while valuable, might have also hurt Sutton at times in his first two seasons with the Steelers. He's been asked to play inside, outside and even at safety, at times, making him the Swiss Army knife of the Steelers' secondary.
Need somebody to play on the boundary? Sutton can do that. How about in the slot? There's Sutton. Have some injuries at safety? Get Sutton some snaps there.
That's been the case for Sutton throughout his career, though a hamstring injury his rookie season that cost him half the year didn't help.
He played in the dime last season, essentially as a dime linebacker/slot corner, but this season has settled into a shared role as the Steelers' slot corner in both nickel and dime packages situationally, sharing the spot with Mike Hilton.
What does that mean?
"It’s kind of depended on the situation, teams, schemes, down and distance," Sutton told me. "It can vary from possession downs, the type of guys that they have, the matchups we are trying to create. We’re constantly playing a game. Teams are playing that game with us offensively. We’ve got to do the same thing in return, situationally."
The bottom line has been that on obvious passing downs, Sutton has been on the field. When teams play three receivers on early downs or when its third-and-short, Hilton, a good blitzer and run stopper, is out there.
It's largely worked for both. Sutton's five pass breakups are tied for ninth in the AFC, while Hilton's three tackles for losses rank among the league leaders for defensive backs. He's also chipped in three pass breakups and an interception, meaning the Steelers have gotten good production out of their nickel corners. Quarterbacks have a passer rating of 82.2 when targeting Sutton, well below league average.
"The nickel corner is no longer the 12th defender when he’s on the field 75 percent of the time in today’s game," Tomlin said. "They get introduced in defensive warmups, or whatever, in pregame and so forth. So, they’re getting compensated accordingly. It’s about participation. It’s nothing earth-shattering or ground-breaking there. They’re playing more because people are employing more receivers."
Being compensated accordingly, as Tomlin put it, could become a factor down the road. Hilton let it be known in the offseason he would like a new deal that would pay him more than the $645,000 he's making this season. The Steelers didn't budge on that, likely because they knew they had Sutton waiting in the wings.
But Sutton's contract status is going to become interesting in the next year. Because he was part of that draft class with Watt, Smith-Schuster and Conner, it could be difficult for the Steelers to pay them all, given their contracts will all come due at the same time.
Sutton, who's making $677,000 this season, will worry about that when the time comes. In the meantime, he'll keep making plays when they come his way.
"The more playing time you get, the more opportunities you have to make plays on the ball," he said. "I’ve tried to make the most of what I get. Whatever situation I’m out there in, it’s about being ball aware."
And that's happened even when he's been forced out of his comfort zone. In last week's win against the Chargers, the Steelers began the game without Steven Nelson, forcing Artie Burns into the starting linup. In the fourth quarter, Joe Haden went out with a groin injury. That meant Sutton got bumped outside to replace him.
"It’s definitely tough, especially when you’re going inside to outside," safety Minkah Fitzpatrick told me. "A lot of guys like Cam, his job the last couple of weeks has been to cover the guy inside on third downs. Now, in the middle of a game, you transition to outside. Your film study, you were looking at the outside guys, but you were looking more at the inside guys and their tendencies. He’s a great player and can cover really well. He showed that (in that game). He played really well."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
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Steelers practice, Rooney Sports Complex, Oct. 23, 2019 -- MATT SUNDAY / DKPS[/caption]
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