Has anyone seen or heard from Shannon White?

The last anyone saw or heard of the big guy, he was supposedly doing celebratory victory laps in the buff around his house when the Steelers took Zach Frazier with the 51st pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Shannon, being a West Virginia fan, was the epitome of Steeler Nation’s excitement over selecting the Center out of WVU. We here at the Steel Curtain Network had to keep a close eye on him to make sure he didn’t have a medical episode, as we also shared the excitement over one of the more heralded and desired NFL prospects around SCN in some time.

Shannon was the one who turned me onto Frazier in the first place when the Draft process started. After viewing his tape and hearing all of the character stories, this was about as close to a homerun pick as the Steelers could have made in the second round in my opinion.

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2024 Draft has been nothing short of exciting with the picks made already. They have bulked up the Offensive Line, which should make every Steelers fan (including Najee and Jaylen Warren as well) extra happy.

Through two days though, it is apparent that Omar Khan’s strategy THIS year as opposed to last year is patience.

Last year, the Steelers were wheeling and dealing picks all over the Board to get their guys. This year, at least through the first two days, the Steelers have stood pat and gotten amazing value and talent.

They waited as the 1st Round went off the rails fast with Penix going to the Falcons, tossing the Board into chaos, and took Troy Fautanu at #20.

They waited in the 2nd Round as Jackson Powers-Johnson came off the Board 7 picks before them to the Raiders, and yet the Steelers didn’t panic by trying to jump up to ensure they got Frazier.

And after all of that waiting in the first two rounds, what does King Khan do in the 3rd Round? He sits tight like Don Corleone in the Godfather, quiet and calculating, as the Board comes TO him in the 3rd Round, and he takes Roman Wilson, the fiesty and fast Wide Receiver out of Michigan, and also Payton Wilson, 2023 Bednarik Award winner and tackling machine extraordinaire.

It’s early, REALLY early, as the Draft isn’t even over yet, but the consensus feel amongst most Steelers fans about the 2024 Draft so far is that this has been ANOTHER homerun Draft for Omar Khan, Andy Weidl, and the rest of the Steelers Personnel Department. If they keep this up, Weidl will be out the door QUICK on his way to a GM job, but let’s think about that at another time.

For now, let’s rejoice in the picks the Steelers have already made, focus on Day 3 of the Draft, and sit back to see what the Steelers can do to round out the Roster.

With OT, C, WR, and ILB being the picks the Steelers have made through the first two days, the front office has hit the major upgrade needs of the roster outside of Cornerback and Defensive Tackle. I fully expect the Steelers to select one of both positions over Day 3, and there are some names here that the Steelers have met with in the Pre-Draft process.

So far, the Steelers have the following selections in Day 3:

Round 4: #119 (#19 of 35 in R4)

Round 6: #178 (#2 of 44 in R6)

Round 6: #195 (#19 of 44 R6)

Let’s see what we can do to try and fit the Steelers with some Day 3 prospects that can fill the roster and contribute to the team in 2024.

4th Round, #119 Overall – MJ Devonshire, Cornerback – Pittsburgh

Devonshire’s weaknesses are of the type that makes him more intriguing as a Nickel Corner and can mask those deficiencies. His lack of top end speed would make him more appealing inside where he can keep everything in front of him and pass off transitioning WR’s coming through his zone.

Devonshire is a cornerback with long arms and impressive ball production. He’s confident in press, allowing his athleticism to trace routes while instincts and agility key his work from zone. Devonshire locates the quarterback and ball flight fairly quickly with his back to the ball. He sits in the pocket of an average route runner and uses his length and reactive quickness to swat throws away.

The long speed appears to be average and he picks up his share of flags with excessive grabbing against big targets downfield. A move to nickel is possible, and he has the athletic traits to make it work provided his run-support efforts don’t short-circuit his opportunity.

6th Round, #178 Overall – Khristian Boyd, Defensive Tackle – Northern Iowa

Boyd wasn’t always this well-known. Coming out of high school, he did have an offer from Kansas to play at the FBS level, but that scholarship was lost when coaching changes occurred. Opportunities were few and far between, but soon after he chose Northern Iowa, Boyd felt like he was home.

Boyd redshirted in 2018, but from 2019 onward, he was a fixture in the Panthers’ defensive-line rotation. And by 2023, he was a defensive star. In his final four seasons, had amassed 122 tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, five pass deflections, and two fumble recoveries. By the end of his Panthers career, Boyd was already a known commodity in scouting circles and then had a dominant Senior Bowl showing.

At 6′ 2″ and 330 lbs, he might remind some of a more svelt version of Casey Hampton, but has more requisite quickness than Big Snack had, and would be a great addition next to Cam Heyward.

6th Round, #195 Overall – Daequan Hardy, Cornerback, Penn State

Two years ago the secondary for Penn State had Joey Porter Jr, Kalen King, and Daequan Hardy roaming the defensive backfield and was considered one of the best in all of college football. JPJ is already in Pittsburgh, and both King and Hardy are both eligible to be drafted. While I expect King to go in the 4th or 5th Round, Hardy is a good selection here in the 6th to be able to double dip for Nickel Corners.

The Steelers currently are short on Nickel Corners, so double dipping for two of them in this Draft makes sense. Mike Sanistril was considered to be the best of the Nickel bunch, but he went one selection ahead of Zach Frazier way back in the 2nd Round.

Hardy is a sensible pick here with the preffered size and requisite quickness. Feisty and a willing tackler, Hardy should be able to develop into a quality CB3, providing yet more depth to the CB room.

So with Day 3 coming quick, and the 2024 NFL Draft as a whole wrapping up tonight, what positions or players are you focusing on to help the Steelers out in the late rounds?

Did I get any right, or are you like “Corey, you are off your rocker brother!”.

Let me know in the comments below!