The Pittsburgh Steelers knew what they were getting when they signed veteran cornerback Patrick Peterson to a two-year, $14 million deal in free agency just hours after losing Cameron Sutton to the Detroit Lions.
What Pittsburgh was getting was a veteran leader for the secondary, one who could step in and provide that much needed leadership and experience at the position while the Steelers go through a bit of a transition at cornerback.
Of course, Peterson can still play, too, coming off of his best season since 2018, recording five interceptions last season and grading out as a top-10 cornerback from Pro Football Focus’ metrics.
So far in training camp Peterson has adjusted well to the Steelers’ scheme and has been a steady presence on the field. Teammates are continuing to learn all about his leadership, too.
Speaking with SiriusXM’s Pat Kirwan and Jim Miller prior to Friday Night Lights practice at Latrobe Memorial Stadium, outside linebacker Alex Highsmith praised Peterson and said it’s been “cool” to see Peterson pouring into the young guys on the roster from a leadership standpoint.
“Pat Pete’s awesome. He’s a veteran guy who’s been in league for a while and played at a high level and still plays at a high level. And so it’s just cool having a guy like that,” Highsmith said to Kirwan and Miller, according to audio via SiriusXM.com. “Just kind of talking to him about some of his experiences in the league and stuff like that. I feel like he just adds a lot of value to our defense, and it’s cool seeing him pouring to the young guys that he’s with like Joey Porter Jr. Corey Trice and those guys.
“It’s cool seeing his veteran leadership on display.”
Entering his 12th NFL season, Peterson has seen — and done — it all, outside of winning a Super Bowl. He’s well on his way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and will go down as one of the best cornerbacks the game has ever seen.
Though he’s not what he was at the height of his powers in Arizona, Peterson remains a cerebral cornerback overall and has adjusted well throughout his career, going from man-heavy schemes in Arizona to a zone heavy scheme in Minnesota. Now, he’s back in a man-heavy scheme in Pittsburgh.
Peterson will move around quite a bit defensively and has already logged some snaps at safety this summer. At 33, he’s no spring chicken at a demanding position, but he’s taken care of his body and put in the time and effort to prepare at a high level.
Now, he’s able to pour that back into younger teammates, especially Porter at the cornerback position, serving as that mentor. That’s largely why the Steelers went after Peterson in free agency. Knowing they were going to go young and try to develop some cornerbacks, they needed that veteran presence.
None were able to check off those boxes in free agency like Peterson, who finally signed with the team he wanted to be a part of dating back to 2021.
We’ll see what Peterson has left to offer on the field once the games start but for a star-studded defense, having his veteran presence and leadership in the secondary is going to be key. He adds a ton of value from that standpoint, which Highsmith has already observed. Hopefully the Steelers continue to see that veteran leadership from Peterson throughout the 2023 season while still playing at a high level.
