Former Aliquippa, West Virginia star Dravon Henry meets with Steelers
Four more defensive players were brought in for predraft visits Thursday by the Pittsburgh Steelers, including one with Western Pennsylvania ties.
West Virginia safety Dravon Henry, an Aliquippa native, met with the Steelers along with Central Michigan cornerback Sean Bunting, Akron linebacker Ulysees Gilbert III and Texas linebacker Gary Johnson.
Because he is considered a local player, Henry doesn’t count against the Steelers’ official allotment of 30 visits. The Steelers have hosted 18 players, including three local visitors.
The 6-foot, 202-pound Henry was a four-year starter for the Mountaineers, and his 51 career starts is a school record. In 2018, he started all 12 games at free safety.
For his career, Henry had 215 tackles, including 162 solo stops. He had 91/2 tackles for loss, six interceptions and 10 passes defensed.
In high school, Henry was a three-time member of the Tribune-Review’s Terrific 25.
Henry, though, was not invited to the Senior Bowl or NFL Combine and is viewed as a late-round draft candidate.
Bunting (6-0, 195) ran a 4.42 40 at the NFL Combine after he left Central Michigan following his junior season. Bunting was the team’s defensive player of the year in 2018 after recording 37 tackles, two interceptions and two forced fumbles.
The NFL’s draft prospects site has Bunting rated as the No. 12 cornerback.
Gilbert (6-0, 224) was not invited to the NFL Combine. A former two-time first-team MAC player at Akron, he slipped to second team in 2018. He had 85 tackles, including 71/2 for loss, in 12 games. He tied the school record by playing in 51 games at Akron.
Johnson (6-0, 226) ran a 4.43 40 at the combine. He spent two years at Texas after starting his career at Dodge City Community College. Johnson was a second-team Big 12 selection after he led Texas with 90 tackles in 13 starts. He had 161/2 tackles for loss and 61/2 sacks.
Of the Steelers’ 18 predraft visitors, they have hosted five running backs, five linebackers, three wide receivers, three safeties, one cornerback and one tight end.
Here are the previous players to visit with the Steelers:
APRIL 1: RB Miles Sanders (Penn State), RB Damien Harris (Alabama), TE Alize Mack (Notre Dame), WR Andy Isabella (UMass), WR Dillon Mitchell (Oregon)
APRIL 2: RB Mike Weber (Ohio State), RB Jordan Scarlett (Florida), RB: Travis Homer (Miami), WR Miles Boykin (Notre Dame), LB David Long (West Virginia)
APRIL 3: S Ugo Amadi (Oregon), S Darnell Savage (Maryland), LB Jordan Brailford (Oklahoma State), LB Ben Burr-Kirven (Washington).
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Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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