Former Pittsburgh Steelers CB and current scout Ike Taylor jumped on PG Sports Now with Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to talk about the offseason that Pittsburgh has had up to training camp and specifically how GM Omar Khan has left no stone unturned in aggressively upgrading this roster with draft picks as well as outside free agents.
Batko asked Taylor about veteran CB Patrick Peterson, whom the team signed this offseason and specifically how he sees the 33-year-old cornerback holding up in the twilight of his NFL career as he’s lost a step athletically from what he once was as a younger player.
“I’ve been training with Pat Pete since he was in high school with B-Mac, with Bryant McFadden,” Taylor said. “He used to bring him down to Coach Shaw in Orlando. So, the athlete that he is, he’s forever going to be an athlete. Thirty-three years old, you’re not going to be able to move the way you used to be able to move at 23, so I get that part. But at the same time, you are talking about a savvy, veteran guy that can play everywhere in the secondary. You get these young dudes that can’t play everywhere.”
Peterson was a supreme athlete coming out of LSU, a dynamic player on defense as well as a return ace on special teams. He was up for every national award in college and made a similar impact in his first couple of years in the NFL, returning four punts for touchdowns as a rookie while making an immediate impact as a ball-hawk in the secondary. Over the last decade, Peterson has lost a step in terms of that otherworldly athleticism, but he still remains a solid athlete at the position and has age and experience working to his favor in terms of being a more cerebral player at this stage of his career.
Peterson has faced some of the best receivers and offenses in the league over his 12-year career, becoming a more instinctive player who can diagnose and react to plays quicker than most younger, more athletic defensive backs who are more inexperienced. That knowledge and instincts is invaluable in the latter stages of your career, not only for Peterson, but also for his teammates he can mentor on the field.
“So, when you bring in that kind of veteran leadership, you’re not looking at athleticism,” Taylor continued. “You’re looking at, ok, how can he help and be one of the coaches on the field along with Minkah [Fitzpatrick].”
The signing of Peterson not only gives Pittsburgh a savvy veteran who has still been productive in his older age. It provides them a leader in the secondary alongside Fitzpatrick who can be that coach on the field in the huddle for the young guys like CB Joey Porter Jr., who are just getting their feet wet. Taylor sees Peterson’s value to the Steelers as something that far transcends his actual play. He sees Peterson as a quality player as well as a coach that can do everything asked of him while bringing along the next generation of Steelers defensive backs.
