When you talk about the South Carolina cornerback in the 2023 NFL draft, most people are talking about Cam Smith. Smith is a fringe first-round prospect with lots of NFL-caliber skills. But there’s another cornerback from the Gamecocks drawing draft attention of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Steelers hosted South Carolina cornerback Darius Rush on Thursday as one of the team’s Top 30 visits.
Pittsburgh is in the market for a cornerback after Cameron Sutton signed with the Detroit Lions this offseason. The team signed Patrick Peterson as a stopgap but the team needs a third cornerback who can line up on the outside. Rush has truly elite size and deep speed and needs to clean up his technique and improve play recognition.
In terms of draft stock, Rush’s lack of polish and readiness means he’s likely to come off the board somewhere in the third or fourth-round range based on measurables and triangle numbers.
Steelers top-30 visits on Thursday: OL Steve Avila of TCU, CB Darius Rush of South Carolina, DE Keion White of Ga. Tech and CB Christian Gonzalez of Oregon.
— Ray Fittipaldo (@rayfitt1) April 6, 2023
