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Elijah Riley #37 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after intercepting a pass in the second quarter during a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium on August 19, 2023 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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Steelers' Elijah Riley and Chandon Sullivan are battling down to the wire for the starting job at slot corner

Justin Berl/Getty Images

Steelers' Elijah Riley and Chandon Sullivan are battling down to the wire for the starting job at slot corner

The Steelers defense is starting to take shape and roles are becoming more clearly defined as the preseason comes to a close. But there is one position where the Steelers don’t have a designated starter — not yet, at least.

The competition between Chandon Sullivan and Elijah Riley at slot corner continues as the Steelers prepare to play their final preseason game in Atlanta on Thursday night.

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“Those guys are both making a case that they belong,” defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said Monday afternoon before practice.

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They certainly did that Saturday night. Each snagged an interception, with Riley picking off Bills backup quarterback Matt Barkley in the end zone, while Sullivan made a nifty play after deflecting a pass at the line of scrimmage and catching it as he fell to the ground.

Austin is looking for a new slot corner after the offseason departures of Cameron Sutton and Arthur Maulet. Sutton left in free agency after signing a three-year, $33 million contract with the Lions. The Steelers granted Maulet’s wish to be released in the spring after Sullivan was signed.

Maulet, who now plays for the Ravens, played 45% of the snaps in the slot last season and 35% of the snaps there in 2021. Sutton usually bumped inside the past two seasons when the Steelers played with five or six defensive backs in the game.

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Riley dressed for four games last season and played some safety, but he wasn’t moved to slot corner until after the season ended. Before coming to the Steelers late last summer, Riley played for the Eagles and the Jets. He started seven games for the Jets during the 2021 season.

“I want to be someone the team can rely on no matter where I’m put on the field,” said Riley, a West Point graduate. “Whether that’s special teams, defense, wherever I am, I want to be a difference-maker.”

The Steelers have used two types of slot corners in the past. Riley is in the mold of Mike Hilton, who played for the Steelers from 2016-20. He’s a bigger slot corner who can defend well against the run and play in coverage.

“Kind of a corner-safety hybrid, I guess, a little linebacker too,” Riley said, describing his position. “It’s fun. I feel like it fits my skill set.”

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Sullivan is a more traditional inside cover corner. He played previously for the Eagles, Packers and Vikings. He’s the more experienced player with 71 career games and 31 starts on his resume.

“I’m a veteran,” Sullivan said. “I’ve played a lot of games in a lot of systems, so it was easy for me to come in and learn and help wherever I could.”

Austin said a decision on who will start won’t come until after Thursday night.

“They’ve both made improvements, which is what I’m really looking for,” Austin said. “It’s still a tight competition that will go down to the wire. We’ll see how it shakes out after this game.”

It’s possible the Steelers go back and forth between Riley and Sullivan depending on the opponent or how matchups go during games. They did that with Maulet and Sutton the past two seasons.

“There’s room if you have another skill set,” Austin said of the possibility of both players making the 53-man roster. “Eli can play safety. Sully can play corner. If you can play another position — not your position — that gives you an opportunity to keep two. Or if one of them is a special teams demon, that factors into things. If one of those guys is a good special teams player, he still has a great opportunity to win a spot on the team.”

The wild card in the slot corner discussion is veteran outside corner Patrick Peterson, another new addition to the secondary this season. Peterson was signed in free agency to play on the outside, but he has talked about playing in the slot and other positions in the secondary. He’s played one snap in the slot in two preseason games — and that came Saturday night against the Bills. 

Any idea of moving Peterson around the secondary hinges on the development of rookie corner Joey Porter Jr., who also hauled in an interception against the Bills. Porter played 24 snaps Saturday night after missing the first preseason game due to an injury.

“That was one small sample size,” Austin said. “We’ll see if he can build on that this week because that’s really the key. We want to see those good plays show up repeatedly.”

If Porter proves he is ready to handle playing on the outside, Austin will have more flexibility in how he can deploy Peterson and his other defensive backs.

For Austin, that’s nothing new. He’s mixed and matched with different personnel packages in his defensive backfield since he was hired in 2019. The names on the backs of the jerseys might be different this season, but the constant with the new players is their versatility.

“I’ve really liked our secondary since I’ve been here,” Austin said. “I like their acumen, their intelligence. That won’t be much different. We’re going to move guys around. You guys know that. We’ll see how they fit. They might move around differently, but in terms of the structure, they can do it.”

Ray Fittipaldo: rfittipaldo@post-gazette.com and Twitter @rayfitt1.

First Published: August 21, 2023, 7:26 p.m.

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