PITTSBURGH -- One of the most gifted cornerbacks of this generation grew up near Pittsburgh and nurtured his island within a few yards of Steelers personnel evaluators.

University of Pittsburgh football shares a practice facility with the Steelers, who were evaluating defensive players for the 15th overall pick in the 2007 NFL draft. Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert and coach Mike Tomlin had seen All-American Darrelle Revis up close dozens of times before hosting him for a formal interview.

"They had more exposure to Darrelle than anyone," former Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. "Mike and Kevin could watch us practice from their desks."

As the Steelers and New York Jets prepare for Sunday's matchup in Heinz Field, back-to-back draft picks from nine years ago will help lead their respective defenses.

At No. 15 overall, the Steelers made a prudent pick with Lawrence Timmons, a former Pro Bowl linebacker with five 100-plus-tackle seasons and two missed games over his career. Timmons has validated the selection.

But when the Jets parachuted into the 14th selection via trade with the Carolina Panthers, some around the league believed they were blocking the Steelers from taking Revis, who's on his second stint with the Jets. Even Revis wondered about that, telling the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the night of the draft, "I figured I'd be going to the Steelers," an Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, native ready to give his hometown team years of coverage assurance in the AFC North.

After a Hall of Fame trajectory and nearly $120 million in career earnings, Revis giggles good–naturedly about the almost pairing when asked Wednesday during a conference call with Steelers media.

"If it would have happened, in a perfect world, I don't think it would have been a bad pick, I'll tell you that," Revis said.

Asked whether he wanted to be a Steeler at the time, Revis said he has never been one to predict his future and doesn't play "shoulda, coulda, woulda." But Revis was more definitive about Pittsburgh's chances at landing Revis in 2015 free agency, saying negotiations were more than complimentary. "There was definitely an interest there," said Revis, who eventually re-upped with New York.

Tomlin acknowledged the Steelers at least took a hard look back in 2007, but the details are hazy.

"That’s so long ago, I can’t remember. ... He went off the board, I think, before we picked," Tomlin said. "I think he was probably the top corner in that draft, so I looked at him in the ways you look at top corners in the draft, ones that you probably don’t get a chance to take."

The Steelers often follow the best-player-available mantra in the first round, with positional need a consideration. For example, taking two outside linebackers and two interior offensive linemen since 2010 is not by accident.

Cornerback has been a need for a while now, and Revis was indeed high on Pittsburgh's draft board. From Justin Gilbert to Marcus Peters, the Steelers have been known to target cornerbacks who were gone by the time their pick was up.

Revis' stock began to soar once he ran a 4.38-second 40-yard dash. That raw speed pushed him out of reach.

"From what I was told, they loved [Revis]," said Wannstedt of the Steelers. "But there were rumors about how high he'd be drafted. I think they would have been comfortable taking him."

One source with knowledge of the Steelers' draft that year said Tomlin's affection for Timmons was hard to ignore, and it might have broken any Revis-Timmons tie for the pick. Tomlin had done substantial research on Timmons from his days as an assistant with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which is less than a five-hour drive to Tallahassee, where Timmons played at Florida State. Getting a tone-setting linebacker was a welcome notion for a then-first-year head coach.

Timmons kept hearing Pittsburgh was high on him but remembers being a naive 20-year-old who had no idea what was happening.

"It would have made more sense for the hometown guy to get picked," said Timmons of Revis. "He's from Aliquippa, and you know the football history there. They said I would go top 15, so as a kid from South Carolina, just going top 15 was a blessing for me."

Timmons said that he and Revis playing in the same game nearly 10 years after being drafted with consecutive picks is "just weird," in the best possible way. The six defensive players drafted before Revis and Timmons are all out of the league.

While it's still unclear where the Steelers organization ranked both players, ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said Pittsburgh needed linebacker help and Timmons could really play.

"I actually had a slightly higher grade on Timmons coming out than Revis," Kiper said. "Timmons had a really high grade and was considered one of the top players in that draft. Taking him was not something that was a disappointment to anybody once that Revis was gone ... Timmons filled a big need and turned out to be a heckuva player."

Revis, 31, and Timmons, 30, are still good players but don't fly around the field like they did back in 2007. Receivers and quarterbacks don't seem to fear Revis Island as much. Revis has talked about the possibility of moving to safety one day. Timmons is in the last year of a contract that pays him $8.7 million in base salary, and the Steelers weren't close to re-signing him before the season started, an indication that they might part ways in 2017.

But Tomlin points to both players still starting games in a youth-movement league as a special feat, a reminder the Steelers faced a win-win proposition in that war room nine years ago.

"I’m sure there are a lot of guys around them in that draft who have moved on with life," Tomlin said. "You tip your cap to those guys, not only in terms of what they’re capable of -- I think that speaks to their draft position -- but, their 10-year body speaks more to what they’re willing to do. I’m sure being good teammates is a part of that."