Pittsburgh Steelers
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Analyst critical of Steelers' signing.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were one of the more active teams on the opening day of the new NFL league year.
Pittsburgh made an impact trade for Michael Pittman Jr., while they also went out and signed some impact players. However, one intriguing deal the Steelers had agreed to on the opening day of the legal tampering period was signing cornerback Jamel Dean to a three-year, $36.75 million deal.
Dean projects to be a starting cornerback for the Steelers, but one NFL analyst called the deal risky. NFL analyst Daniel Popper of The Athletic believes the deal could come back to bite Pittsburgh due to his checkered past.
“The Steelers got Dean for a reasonable price, but there are some legitimate injury concerns with the cornerback as he enters his age-30 season,” Popper wrote. “Over the past three seasons, he has missed time with foot, back, hamstring, knee and hip flexor injuries. When healthy, Dean is a big and fast corner. He is an easy mover for his size. This is a risky contract given the checkered past.”
Dean has spent his entire NFL career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after being selected in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He won Super Bowl LV with the Buccaneers.
Dean recorded 46 tackles and 3 interceptions last season for the Buccaneers.
Dean Can Replace James Pierre
Although Popper was critical of the Steelers’ signing of Dean, he does fill an immediate hole.
Starting cornerback James Pierre left the Steelers to sign a two-year deal worth $8.5 million with the Minnesota Vikings. Pierre was a starting cornerback for Pittsburgh, and he opted to move on, which resulted in the Steelers signing Dean.
In 2025, Pierre set career-highs in starts (5), pass deflections (11), and opposing passer rating allowed (41.4).
Although the Steelers did sign Dean to help replace the void of Pierre, the team still has other options in the secondary. The Steelers’ secondary is led by Joey Porter Jr., Pro Bowl safety Jalen Ramsey, DeShon Elliott, and Brandin Nichols, among others.
Dean is projected to start at nickel for the Steelers.
Steelers Focused on Improving Defense
Although Pittsburgh won the AFC North last season, the Steelers wanted to improve their defense.
The Steelers hired Mike McCarthy as their new head coach, and he made a clear statement in his introductory press conference.
“Defense wins championships,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy, meanwhile, said he liked the defense already and believes it’s something the team can build around.
“I’m really excited about the defense,” McCarthy said. “The history of the Steelers defense and staying with the 3-4 is important as far as the origin of it, and that’s something we can build off. I’ve been a head coach 18 years, I’ve had one top-five defense, and we won a Super Bowl that year. The importance of defense is critical.”
The Steelers had finished No. 1 in total defense that season, and McCarthy wants to build off that in 2026 and beyond.
“We definitely want to build off what’s in place here,” McCarthy added.
Pittsburgh’s defense is led by two dominant pass rushers in T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith.