Every time a Pittsburgh Steelers defensive player does an interview it seems that inevitably the question is asked about the defense being too old. NFL Network analyst Warren Sapp makes sure to say it whenever he talks about the Steelers defense and it seems that several others in the media try to make it a talking point as well.
Veteran cornerback Ike Taylor was on NFL AM Wednesday morning and was asked by host Eric Davis if he is tired yet of hearing the “old” term thrown around so much.
“We don\’t pay no mind,” said Taylor. “We look at it as a kind of motivation. Yeah, they say we\’re old, but age, does it really matter to some people? Yeah. You can say that some guy is losing a step and I can understand that because age comes with the territory, especially playing in the NFL. But we\’ve got some prideful men in this group. We all know that when everybody is on the same page we\’re tough to beat.”
While the media continues to bang the “old” drum, they fail to recognize that the Steelers are actually younger this year on defense as Keenan Lewis is now starting opposite Taylor and Larry Foote has replaced the retired James Farrior. Ryan Mundy has also started both of the Steelers first two games this year, but that is not recognized at all. When you throw in the fact that defensive end Aaron Smith is also retired and veteran linebacker James Harrison has yet to play a down of football so far, and you can see just how “old” the media act has become.
