The Pittsburgh Steelers are hosting one of the NFL Draft’s top slot corners for a pre-draft visit on Monday. According to NFL Insider Aaron Wilson, Rutgers CB Max Melton is coming into town Monday, just over two weeks ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft.
As Wilson notes, Melton wowed with impressive testing at the 2024 NFL Combine. Weighing in at 5111, 187 pounds with over 32-inch arms , he ran a blazing 4.39 40 while jumping 40.5 inches in the vert and 11’4″ in the broad.
Melton’s Instagram account showed him in Pittsburgh as of Sunday night.
Our scouting report noted a physical corner who played on the inside and outside, showing plus ball skills and willingness to come downhill and hit. We concluded he’s a run-stopping slot similar to the Las Vegas Raiders’ Nate Hobbs.
“Overall, Max Melton’s scouting report shows a feisty corner with experience playing all over the defense. He has the press skills to play on the outside but is most likely to be viewed as a slot option, given his smaller frame and his impressive run defense. While he’s fast, he lacks some change-of-direction skills, and his game is inconsistent. Having issues defending the middle of the field will be a concern for a slot corner forced to cover a lot of ground.
But he should become an ace special teamer and tone-setter who can play as a nickel in the NFL, especially for teams who like to blitz and involve them in run fits. Teams who play sub-package as their “base,” like a Buffalo or Las Vegas, who need a corner who can be a de facto linebacker. My NFL comp to him is a fairly recent one in the Raiders’ Nate Hobbs.“
He finished his career with 40 starts, recoding 111 total tackles (8.5 for a loss) along with 22 PDs, eight INTs, one sack, and one forced fumble. Melton picked off three passes in 2023 and attended this year’s Senior Bowl where our Ross McCorkle interviewed him.
Melton also proved to be an ace special teamer in college, blocking four punts while at Rutgers. Pittsburgh has benefitted from the success S Miles Killebrew’s had on punt blocks and probably appreciate Melton’s ability as much as any team in football.
Melton is considered a Day Two selection, potentially going in the third round. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah ranked him as the 50th best prospect in last week’s rankings.
He is the second slot corner brought in for a pre-draft visit to count against the team’s allotted 30, joining Kentucky’s Andru Phillips. The team also hosted Pitt CB M.J. Devonshire, though he is considered a local visit. Generally, this is the last week of April teams hold pre-draft visits so we’ll see if the team brings in anyone else Monday and throughout the week. To date, we now know 18 non-local prospects who have or are reportedly scheduled to visit with the Steelers.
