Steelers Now
Free agent cornerback Asante Samuel, who was recently cleared to return to action after neck surgery this offseason, is set to take three visits this week as he attempts to return to the NFL, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are not on his list.
According to a report by Jordan Schultz of FOX, Samuel has scheduled visits with the Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings, but not Pittsburgh, despite the fact that Steelers team neurosurgeon Dr. David Okonkwo is the one tha performed the surgery on Samuel and cleared him to return to action.
Samuel had neck surgery in April. The 26-year-old was injured while playing for the Los Angeles Charges in October. The injury was initially characterized as a shoulder issue, but subsequently caused Samuel to need surgery on his neck.
The 5-foot-10, 180-pound cornerback, the son of two-time New England Patriots Super Bowl champion cornerback Asante Samuel Sr., was a second-round pick for the Chargers in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Florida State.
Despite his slight stature, Samuel became a starter as a rookie at outside cornerback for the Chargers, and remained in that role until his injury last season. While he was injured, his contract with the Chargers expired and Samuel became an unrestricted free agent. The Chargers mostly utilized him as an outside cornerback, but teams could be looking at him in the slot, as well.
One area of his game that may not be helped by a move to the slot is his consistently poor tackling. Samuel has a career missed tackle rate of 16.7%, per Pro Football Focus, and a neck injury will probably not improve his tackling technique.
The Steelers have struggled in the secondary despite bringing in three new starters this offseason, with veterans Darius Slay and Juan Thornhill underperforming so far this season. Thornhill was benched last week against the Indianapolis Colts, with the Steelers moving Jalen Ramsey to safety, and Slay has had yielded playing time in recent weeks to Brandin Echols.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Newly Healthy CB to Take 3 Free Agent Visits, Skips Steelers
