For the second straight offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers have reworked their secondary. Last year, Jalen Ramsey was brought in with the hopes of being a lockdown outside corner. When that didn’t go to plan due to performance and also injuries elsewhere in the secondary, he moved to safety and played serviceable snaps given the mid-year switch.
This offseason, Pittsburgh has made several signings at defensive back with hopes of better results than last season, but questions now loom about how Ramsey will be utilized going forward.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Brian Batko believes that what unfolds in the draft might play a role in how the Steelers ultimately decide to deploy Ramsey in 2026.
“It might depend on what the draft brings them and how that shakes out,” Batko said on Friday’s edition of the North Shore Drive podcast. “I think that’s probably the biggest positive for Ramsey at this stage in his career is he can play inside corner. Maybe you’re judicious with how you use him in the nickel. He can play safety. I think Ramsey could be that direction. Or I think he could factor into the cornerback group.”
With Joey Porter Jr. and newcomer Jamel Dean likely to start at outside corner, there isn’t a need for Ramsey to play in a spot he struggled at in 2025. Pittsburgh also re-signed Asante Samuel Jr. who figures to slot in ahead of Ramsey at outside corner. Brandin Echols returns on the second year of his deal as a slot option, though it’s possible he sees more of a reserve role if Ramsey starts in the slot.
At safety, Pittsburgh brought in Jaquan Brisker in free agency while DeShon Elliott will return from injury. Ramsey will likely receive consideration at safety but there are enough pieces there to fill-in if Ramsey is needed at cornerback.
“I believe the new staff likes Ramsey and wants to work with him,” Batko continued. “But you’ve also got to give Patrick Graham a clean slate and let him figure out how to use his personnel because it’s not like the Steelers’ secondary established itself last season.”
The pieces are there for defensive coordinator Patrick Graham to have options with how he will deploy personnel in the secondary. A new perspective could be valuable. There was plenty that went wrong in 2025 and no reason to carry the same plan into 2026 and expect better results. With 12 draft picks, and maybe more, Pittsburgh will likely add at least one more name to the defensive backfield so it may still be too early to plan exactly how certain players will be used.
At the end of the day, Ramsey’s flexibility is a strength. With the other pieces that Pittsburgh’s added to the secondary, a lack of depth at a any position shouldn’t play a factor when deciding how to use him. Instead, the focus should remain on maximizing his impact as Pittsburgh aims to stabilize a unit that has all the pieces on paper to be successful.
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