Former 2nd-round pick Duke Dawson puts injury-riddled career in past, fights to make Steelers

Like coach Mike Tomlin had warned Thursday, gleaning too much from Duke Dawson being the first-team nickel defensive back during the first rep of training camp was at an observer’s own peril. Come Day 2 of Pittsburgh Steelers camp Friday, Dawson was closer to third-team status than starter.

But that doesn’t mean Dawson isn’t in the running to serve as the Steelers’ No. 1 nickel/slot defender this season.

“Just coming in ready to work each and every day,” Dawson said Friday from Saint Vincent College. “Right now, we are rotating at that (nickel) spot. It’s a great group of men in that DB room, we help each other out with everything. So I’m just coming in focused and ready to work.”

Dawson was an intriguing pickup by the Steelers last October, when they added him to their practice squad. A former second-round pick of the New England Patriots, to say that Dawson has had his career derailed by injury would be an understatement. Four of the five NFL seasons that have passed since he entered the league out of the University of Florida have featured a stint on the injured reserve and/or physically unable to perform lists:

• As a rookie in 2018, a hamstring injury meant he was on IR and did not play during New England’s run to winning the Super Bowl
• In 2020 after a trade to the Denver Broncos, Dawson suffered a torn ACL which left him still rehabbing as the following season began.
• Last season, a groin injury late during training camp with the Carolina Panthers ultimately led to them releasing Dawson.

“I have had a shaky journey, man,” the 27-year-old Dawson said, “but I am always looking at the man above to thank him for everything. For me personally him seeing me down, helping me be a better man, a better teammate, a better person. I’m just a better human being now.”

Steelers 2-a-days: James Daniels stabilized right guard; former 2nd-round pick Duke Dawson a cornerback option https://t.co/ndNGBTkgvx

— Tribune-Review Sports (@TribSports) June 24, 2023

After joining the Steelers’ practice squad Oct. 12, Dawson has stuck with the team since. The departure of Arthur Maulet left the Steelers without a natural option at the nickel back spot — although free-agent signee Chandon Sullivan is the most likely candidate.

Sullivan, Elijah Riley and Dawson are in the running, as is moving veteran Patrick Peterson to the slot and someone else (likely Joey Porter Jr.) taking over on the outside.

The 5-foot-10, 198-pound Dawson said he has repped almost exclusively against slot receivers in practice since joining the Steelers. The Patriots, Broncos and Panthers also deployed him mostly in that way, though Dawson has not appeared in an NFL regular-season game since 2020 and has only 26 games of experience overall (all with Denver in 2019-20).

“After what I’ve been through, I think that has helped me become a better player and better person off the field as well,” said Dawson, who termed himself completely healthy. “You learn some things from everywhere you’ve been, from all the coaches you have and from all the experiences you have in life — good and bad.

“Whatever they want me to play, I can go wherever. I am not going to put a cap on what I can do. Just go out and play and perform.”

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