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When it comes to mock drafts, everyone has their specific sources for which they believe has the best knowledge leading up to the 2015 NFL Draft on April 30th. At WalterFootball.com, the site we focus on our Mock Draft Monday articles, they have picked the Pittsburgh Steelers with the same pick at No. 22 in the first round of the draft in back-to-back weeks for the first time leading up to the big day.
The selection I am speaking of is the team taking cornerback Kevin Johnson out of Wake Forest in the first round. Take a look at WalterFootball.com's thinking behind the selection:
The Steelers could miss out on the top edge rushers, so instead could target their next biggest need: pass coverage. Clearly, Pittsburgh needs to improve its cornerbacks. Collins fits with other corners the Steelers have drafted under Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin.
Johnson collected 43 tackles with six passes broken up and one interception in 2014. While those numbers aren't huge, teams avoided the senior and threw elsewhere. Johnson was very reliable over the past three years. He totaled 58 tackles with three interceptions and 12 passes broken up in 2013. Johnson had almost identical numbers as a sophomore except for three more passes broken up.
In speaking with sources, Johnson is grading out as a possible late first-round or second-round pick. Some teams have him in Round 2 just because of concerns about his size. The 6-foot, 188-pounder is a good cover corner who needs to add weight for the NFL. He has the length and athleticism to cover big receivers along the sideline. If Johnson can add weight in the lead up to the 2015 NFL Draft, that could help him to be a Thursday night pick.
Johnson certainly is a player who could help the Steelers' porous secondary which struggled in 2014, but with other value potentially on the board, some might see Johnson as a stretch to be a first round draft pick. Looking at the depth of the cornerback position, there are plenty of capable cornerbacks who will still be viable options for the Steelers in the early rounds of the draft.
Nonetheless, if a player like Johnson is selected, it shouldn't come as a shock as the organization has been bringing in several defensive backs in hopes of adding to their current roster of William Gay, Antwon Blake, B.W. Webb and Cortez Allen.