Steelers' Asante Samuel Jr Has Created A Stunning Problem Pittsburgh Won't Want To Fix

The Pittsburgh Steelers spent the offseason building a secondary deep enough to survive injuries, contract drama and whatever else September decided to throw at them. That sounded like insurance in July. One game into the season, it may have become something far more complicated. Getting a starting cornerback back into the lineup is usually an easy decision. Pittsburgh suddenly has to figure out what to do when the replacement has made himself difficult to replace.

Mike DeFabo believes Asante Samuel Jr. has played too well for Pittsburgh to simply hand every snap back to Joey Porter Jr. whenever Porter is ready to return. Samuel's fit in Patrick Graham's defense has allowed him to turn what began as an opportunity created by Porter's absence into a legitimate role the Steelers may need to preserve.

During a recent appearance on SNR Drive, DeFabo explained why Samuel's play has made the eventual secondary reshuffle more complicated. He also contrasted Graham's approach with the more man-heavy defenses Pittsburgh featured under Mike Tomlin and Teryl Austin.

“With Asante Samuel Jr., I think the Steelers feel like they’re in a good position right now because he’s played so well… He really fits Patrick Graham’s scheme. Patrick Graham is more of a zone-centric defensive coordinator, whereas Mike Tomlin and Teryl Austin leaned heavily into man coverages… He’s thrived within this role and made the absolute most of this opportunity that’s been presented to him in Porter’s absence. And as well as he has played to this point, I think it would be hard to take him off the field entirely,” DeFabo said.

Week 1 gave that argument some actual regular-season evidence. Samuel started opposite Jamel Dean while Porter was inactive, and Pittsburgh held the Atlanta Falcons to 143 passing yards in a 20-13 win. Samuel's box score contained only one tackle, which is about as useful for evaluating a cornerback as counting potholes to judge a highway. More important was how little Pittsburgh's coverage structure appeared to suffer without its top outside corner.

The scheme helped. According to Next Gen Stats data cited after the opener, Pittsburgh played zone coverage on every Atlanta dropback. That represented a dramatic shift from the man-heavy identity of the previous regime, and Samuel looked comfortable operating with vision on the quarterback rather than living in isolated press assignments.

That style suits his strengths. Samuel is 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, but his game has always leaned on quickness, instincts and ball skills more than overwhelming receivers at the line. He entered 2026 with 50 career starts and seven interceptions, so Pittsburgh is not discovering that he can play. The more interesting development is how naturally his skill set appears to fit what Graham wants from this version of the defense.

His summer had already provided clues. Samuel received significant first-team work while Porter and Jalen Ramsey were unavailable early in camp, and the Steelers even experimented with him inside. What began as depth-chart necessity quickly turned into one of the better developments of August. His camp surge made him look less like emergency insurance and more like another piece Graham could move around.

Porter's return would still change the equation. He is bigger, more physical and coming off the best season of his career, with the ability to challenge top receivers at the line in a way Samuel does not. Pittsburgh did not spend years developing Porter just to decide one missed game made him expendable. The question DeFabo is raising is not whether Porter should lose his job.

It is where Samuel's snaps come from once Porter gets it back.

That question is now relevant because Porter remains in the process of returning to full football shape. Pittsburgh listed him as a limited participant Wednesday for conditioning after he missed the opener following a summer spent mostly sidelined. The Steelers may not need to solve the full secondary puzzle this week, but it is waiting whenever Porter is ready.

Steelers May Have Too Many Useful Answers At Cornerback

This is the kind of problem defensive coordinators usually enjoy until somebody asks for a snap count. Porter belongs outside. Dean has earned his role. Ramsey is listed as Pittsburgh's primary nickelback and gives Graham positional flexibility. Samuel has now supplied enough good tape that simply sending him back to the sideline would waste something the defense has discovered.

That leaves Graham with options rather than an obvious depth chart. Samuel can rotate outside, take selected slot work or become part of matchup-specific packages that change depending on the opponent. Ramsey's versatility creates even more possibilities because Pittsburgh does not have to treat every defensive back like a piece glued to one square on the whiteboard.

There is also a larger schematic benefit. If Samuel is genuinely more comfortable in zone while Porter gives Pittsburgh a premium press-man option, Graham can alter the personality of the secondary without making substitutions that scream what coverage is coming. Different combinations can emphasize different strengths without giving quarterbacks a free pre-snap answer.

The Steelers spent the offseason trying to build enough cornerback depth that one absence would not force the defense to change everything. Samuel may have exceeded the assignment.

Porter returning should make Pittsburgh better. DeFabo's point is that Samuel has played well enough to make “better” harder to arrange than simply writing the starter's name back onto the lineup card.

For a defense that spent years searching for reliable cornerback depth, having too many players worth keeping on the field is a pretty good way to discover that the problem has finally changed.

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