Scouting a potential first-round cornerback.

Approaching the 2025 NFL Draft, we’ll be scouting as many of the top prospects that the Pittsburgh Steelers could have their eye on anywhere from Rounds 1 through 7. We’ll break down the prospects themselves, strengths and weaknesses, projected draft capital and their fit with the Steelers.

With Donte Jackson set to hit free agency, the Steelers are in need of a CB2. Today, we take a look at a potential early-round replacement in Notre Dame’s Benjamin Morrison.

The basics on Benjamin Morrison

• Position: Cornerback
• Class: Junior
• Size: 6’0, 190 pounds
• Age: 20
• Projected draft round: 2

Stats via Sports Reference

Benjamin Morrison scouting report

Benjamin Morrison has one of the more convoluted evaluations of this draft class with a lot of different scouting reports saying a lot of different things. While I think the answers are there on tape, he did have a down 2024 that hurt his draft stock and raised some questions about his play. More worrying, he suffered a season-ending hip injury in October that required surgery.

While he told CBS at the NFL Combine that he is now “fully cleared,” the injury still cut Morrison’s final collegiate season short; he entered the draft conversation last year as a consensus first-round pick, and now, he seems to be drawing a lot of second-round projections. He told reporters at the Combine that he’ll have a private showcase for teams at some point before the draft, and how he tests there will be important.

One thing that everyone can agree on, at least, is his ball skills. Morrison nabbed a whopping nine interceptions between his freshman and sophomore seasons.

This one against USC in 2023 demonstrates why: Morrison is able to peel off his man and make a leaping grab to secure the takeaway (No. 20 in all clips).

His instincts and awareness are excellent, and although Morrison was primarily a man corner at Notre Dame, there’s every reason to believe he’ll succeed, and possibly be even better, in a zone scheme at the next level.

In man coverage, Morrison impresses overall but there are still a few weaknesses. In terms of size and speed, he’s fairly average. He can keep up with wide receivers on deep routes, but he won’t wow anyone with his length or quickness. It’s nothing that’ll keep him from starting in the NFL, but it doesn’t scream blue-chip prospect.

Morrison’s footwork has some room to improve, as well. He has a bad habit of taking false jab steps right after the snap when he doesn’t have a cushion, and other times his footwork was a little slow, allowing receivers to create initial separation on short in-routes. The positive of that somewhat patient play-style is I never saw Morrison get burned on an elaborate release — he doesn’t bite on fakes.

However, he can fall victim to the short passing game, although he has the size to improve in more of a press-man scheme. For now, he’s best with a bit of a cushion.

There’s plenty of good in his man coverage, though. Morrison has fairly fluid hips and an efficient backpedal. He also has plenty of good examples of crashing down on slants to make the play — again, his instincts repeatedly shine (top of the screen here):

(Bottom of the screen here).

Morrison is a high-effort defender. He’s not an elite physical presence, but he can go toe-to-toe with contested catch specialists with his good ball skills and positioning (top of the screen in the first rep; bottom of the screen in the second):

However, in that same Ohio State game, Morrison had a handful of jersey on just about every other snap, it seemed. Playing cornerback is just as much about getting away with slight holds as it is avoiding them entirely, but Morrison’s playing style is a tad too grabby at the moment; he’ll need to clean it up a bit at the NFL level.

As a tackler, Morrison’s scrappy style again has its pros and cons. The effort is absolutely there, with Morrison willingly helping out in run support and trying to make the stop after the catch, but his tackling is very hit-and-miss.

Here, you can see him drive on the ball and make a big play:

Here, he just completely whiffs:

Overall, while I’m a little less high on Morrison than I was at the beginning of the draft process after watching several of his games, I still stand by that he could be a very solid late first-round pick in a draft class that has a lot of parity between the second half of the first round and much of Day 2 (assuming he’s fully healthy). At the moment, I think Morrison can be safely projected as a high-end CB2, but the best of his 2023 tape shows some CB1 potential.

Strengths

• Solid all-around athlete
• Strong ball skills, interception production
• Excellent instincts; scrappy mentality
• Man/zone versatility with room to improve
• Just 20 years old (21 to start the regular season) but started three years at Notre Dame

Weaknesses

• Coming off a season-ending injury
• The tape was worse in 2024
• Occasionally sloppy, slow footwork; lacks elite athleticism
• Unpolished tackler despite effort
• Can be too grabby in coverage

What others are saying about Benjamin Morrison

Cory Giddings of Bleacher Report

Benjamin Morrison projects as a late first-round to early second-round pick with the potential to be a first-year starter in the NFL. His combination of smooth athleticism, versatility in coverage, and physicality in the run game makes him a well-rounded prospect capable of fitting into multiple defensive schemes. While he needs to improve his transitions and maintain discipline in zone coverage, Morrison’s skill set offers a high ceiling. With continued development, particularly in his ability to shed blocks and refine his coverage techniques, Morrison has the potential to become a reliable starting cornerback at the next level. … PRO COMPARISON: Kendall Fuller

Brentley Weissman of Pro Football Network

He lacks some of the high-end explosiveness and lateral quickness teams may want out of a No. 1 corner, but he has a high floor and should be able to come in and compete for a starting position early on in his career. Look for Morrison to hear his name called early in Round 2.

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com

Linear outside cornerback whose eye-catching ball production must be balanced out by his inconsistencies in coverage. Morrison would appear to be a natural press corner, but he lacks ideal footwork to mirror and match not only the release but the initial route breaks. He has below-average coverage fluidity in open spaces and appears to be more effective covering the deep ball than shadowing routes on the first two levels. Morrison is more patient from off coverages and takes efficient paths to the throw, so a more zone-oriented scheme could make sense, while helping to minimize areas of concern.

Benjamin Morrison’s fit with the Steelers

If the Steelers want another “Avatar” cornerback, Morrison doesn’t quite fit the bill. However, given Pittsburgh’s interest in Donte Jackson last offseason, I think a player like Morrison is still likely to be on their radar if the medicals check out.

Morrison isn’t quite as fast as Jackson, but he offers similar interception production while being a lot more versatile in coverage. He has the makings of a great zone corner but made a name for himself in man coverage while at Notre Dame. On a team that already has a big, physical CB1 in Joey Porter Jr., Morrison wouldn’t be asked to do too much at first. Again, he’s only 20 years old despite starting a lot of games for the Fighting Irish — I think he’ll get better from here.

TL;DR: Morrison is a young, ball-hawking cornerback with some medical questions following a 2024 season shortened by a hip injury. He brings man and zone talents with strong instincts, although he lacks top-notch athleticism. His effort is a clear strength although his tackling needs work.

What are your thoughts on Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison? And which draft prospects would you like to see profiled next? Let us know in the comments below!