Steelers' Cam Sutton Has Contract Void Today As He Comes Up On Free Agency

The 94th overall pick by Pittsburgh in 2017 started in 15 games and took a big step forward from playing a slot corner role, only to be moved outside and still playing some in the slot. He led the Steelers in pass breakups with 15 and set a new career high in interceptions with 3. 

Future of the Steelers Cornerback Position

While Sutton has made it clear that he would like to remain with the team going forward, it will be interesting to see if the organization makes bringing him back a priority or chooses to look at other options to improve their secondary in 2023. 

NBC Sports Boston recently released their top 10 defensive backs for teams to covet in free agency and Sutton was the third highest-ranked cornerback, with potential Steelers target James Bradberry topping the list. According to Sportrac.com, the former Tennessee Volunteer has a market value of $7.6 million on a three-year deal. The biggest online tracker for pro sports contracts has Sutton in line to earn a contract slightly more expensive than the ones Levi Wallace signed to join the Steelers and the deal the Cincinnati Bengals gave to Mike Hilton to lure him away from the Steel City. 

Even if the team can get Sutton on a contract they like, they should still be looking to upgrade the unit with one of their higher picks in the upcoming draft according to team insider Mike DeFabo of The Athletic:

"Even if the Steelers re-sign Sutton (which they should make every effort to do), I’d still try to snag a corner with pick 17 or 32," he wrote in a recent column assessing the team's biggest offseason decisions. "The Athletic’s draft analyst, Dane Brugler, considers corner to be one of the deepest position groups in the draft, with 12 in his top 79 and six in his top 34."

So even if the Steelers can't grab their preferred choice at the position in the draft, they should still be in the market to add a player from a deep draft. While some of Steeler Nation might be afraid of drafting a cornerback early in the draft due to the organization's poor history of developing homegrown talent at the position, with Ike Taylor as one of the best recent successes, it hasn't been a position to get a premier corner in the draft. With a class as deep as this one, they might actually have a chance to get an impact cornerback. 

The other nice thing for the organization if Sutton is retained, or they decide to add another option at the corner position, they should be able to ease in a rookie and not have to throw him to the wolves of the talented pass catchers in the AFC. The team might also be able to bring back trade deadline acquisition William Jackson III back on a cheap deal after he missed out on playing in any games due to injury. With a mix of Sutton or another free agent signing, Wallace and maybe Jackson, that would allow a rookie time and space to learn and develop without being expected to be featured too high in the lineup.