Shaquille

Richardson

In a dream scenario for the Steelers, Richardson would be able to replace rapidly declining Ike Taylor as a starter in 2015. He has the size (6'0/194) and athletic ability to do it, but has fundamentals to work on. Richardson is a pet project of Steelers secondary coach Carnell Lake, who recruited Shaq to go to UCLA out of high school.

Richardson (6-foot 1/8, 194) was a playmaker in Rich Rodriguez’s Wildcats secondary, piling up 10 interceptions, eight tackles for loss and three forced fumbles across 37 career starts. He clocked a 4.43 forty at the U of A Pro Day, adding impressive jumps of 38 1/2" (vertical) and 10-foot-7 (broad). Richardson was an inconsistent college player and has some off-field concerns, but profiles as a potential eventual NFL starter based on size, movement and college production.

A 2014 fifth-round pick of the Steelers, Richardson has now been cut loose from three teams. His 2015 prospects are grim considering he couldn’t even make it to final cuts.

This will be Richardson’s third NFL team; he was a 2014 fifth-round pick of the Steelers. The Cardinals are starved for cornerback depth behind Patrick Peterson, Justin Bethel, and Jerraud Powers after cutting Alfonzo Dennard.

Richardson was the No. 157 overall pick of the draft last year, but couldn’t crack the Steelers’ 53-man roster. The fact that he’s getting waived at this stage of the offseason — where teams are allowed to keep up to 90 players — bodes extremely poorly for his NFL future.

A fifth-round pick by the Steelers last season, Richardson was unable to crack Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster out of training camp and spent most of the season on the practice squad. He was released with an injury settlement in October. Richardson has the size (6'0/194) and athletic ability to be an NFL starter, but it is concerning he could not find a home in Pittsburgh’s terrible secondary.