Steelers general manager was impressed with the defensive backs from the E/W Shrine Game
Steelers have unearthed players from both major colleges and small schools who were overlooked for some reason during the pre-draft process. That is what happened with starting corner back Cortez Allen in 2011, and the Steelers really took an interest in The Citadel product after The East-West Shrine Game that year.
“We got to the East-West game and he looks like he belongs competing against guys from Division I schools,” Colbert told Steelers.com. “That was another step in our evaluation of him.”
The Steelers picked Allen, who had played in the lower tier of Division I football, in the fourth round of the 2011 draft. And Allen, not third-round pick Curtis Brown of Texas, has emerged as the cornerback who could anchor the secondary in the coming seasons.
Colbert told Steelers.com that he was impressed by the defensive backs he scouted in the East-West Shrine Game, something that is encouraging for a team that is likely to address its secondary early and often in the 2014.
“The defensive backs group is an interesting group,” Colbert said. “It seems like there’s better talent than they’ve had in recent years.”
That felt good to read, since we at Draft Diamonds put in work on the secondary and all the small schoolers on the roster.
NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com