Unique Data Shows Steelers' Omar Khan Fleeced The NFL By Drafting CB Daylen Everette

The Pittsburgh Steelers continue to draw attention across the NFL as their roster-building strategy in the 2026 NFL Draft under GM Omar Khan and new Head Coach Mike McCarthy shows no signs of slowing down. With each draft class, Pittsburgh has leaned into aggressive evaluation and value-driven selections, and the 2026 cycle has already sparked new conversation around one of their most intriguing additions in cornerback Daylen Everette.

That attention is now shifting toward how and why the Steelers were able to land Everette in the first place, 85th overall, especially as analysts begin digging into pre-draft data and positional value trends. Early indicators suggest Pittsburgh may have identified inefficiencies in how teams evaluated Everette’s tape, athletic profile, and role projection, allowing them to capitalize at the right moment.

Now, with new information circulating via RAS.football about his draft range compared to his eventual selection spot, there is growing curiosity around just how far the rest of the league may have misjudged him. That context sets the stage for a deeper look into the numbers behind the pick, and why some believe Khan may have once again outmaneuvered the rest of the NFL draft board.

"Daylen Everette was drafted in round 3 with pick 85 in the 2026 draft class," said RAS.football. "He scored a 9.89 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 34 out of 3075 CB from 1987 to 2026."

The question for those who aren’t familiar with the RAS system is: what does that even mean. Well, it stands for Relative Athletic Score, and it’s a system used to evaluate NFL prospects based purely on athletic testing. Think of RAS like a report card for a player’s physical tools. It takes combine results such as speed, jumps, 40-yard dash times, and agility drills, and compares them to thousands of other players at the same position over the last 40 years. The scale runs from 0 to 10, with higher scores signaling a true athletic freak.

Everette’s 9.89 is basically an A+ for a cornerback. It puts him in elite company when it comes to raw athletic ability, especially at a position that demands speed, fluidity, and explosiveness. That kind of score doesn’t just stand out, it usually pushes players way up draft boards once teams dig into the numbers.

And this is where the conversation around Khan really starts to heat up. Because if Everette truly grades out that high athletically, the argument becomes that Pittsburgh didn’t just get a good player, they potentially got a major value steal relative to where he was available. Which is exactly why some around the league are already suggesting Khan may have once again outsmarted the board in the third round.

Steelers' New CB Drawing Some Exciting Comps

When you look at the comps for Everette, the picture starts to get even more interesting. He’s drawing comparisons to some very real NFL-level athletes, starting with Marlon Humphrey coming out of Alabama in 2017, who posted a 9.51 RAS and went on to become one of the league’s premier corners. 

You also see Kaiir Elam from Florida in 2022 with an 8.94, a long, physical outside corner with first-round pedigree, and Tariq Castro-Fields out of Penn State in 2022 who hit a 9.81, showing elite testing traits that had scouts intrigued even if his draft slide raised questions.

When you stack Everette’s 9.89 against those names, it starts to paint a clear picture of a player who belongs in the same athletic tier as some of the most physically gifted corners to enter the league, which only adds more weight to the argument that Pittsburgh may have landed a major value pick. The Steelers' secondary got even better with this selection.

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