Former Pittsburgh Steelers safety Gerod Holliman was once tabbed as the next draft steal for the team. Drafted in the seventh-round out of Louisville in the 2015 NFL Draft, Holliman led the nation in interceptions during his final collegiate season, which gave him plenty of hype amongst the draft world.
Yet, Holliman’s struggles as a tackler popped up too often, causing him to fall down boards and, eventually, to the Steelers. However, Holliman was released at the end of his first training camp and that was the end of his tenure with the Steelers.
In an appearance on the 31 vision podcast, Holliman discussed the end to his Steelers tenure, and said he never felt like he got a fair shake.
“Unfortunately, that time there, I was mismanaged by the defensive backs coach,” Holliman said. “He never even really gave me a chance. I never even started one preseason game. I pretty much, the playing time I had was equivalent to the first half of the game if I was the starter. That’s how bad it was.”
That was true, as Holliman did not play much during the preseason. However, poor tackling and athleticism precipitated his fall to the seventh round and eventual release. Once thought of as a day two pick, his testing numbers and inconsistent film made him a late day three pick rather than anything else.
After being cut from the Steelers, Holliman joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in December, but they decided not to bring him back after the season. That was the end of Holliman’s career.
