Former Pittsburgh Steelers CB Patrick Peterson knew his phone was going to ring sooner or later. He didn’t expect to earn the label former by the time he hung up, however. After just one season with the team, the Steelers released the future Hall of Famer, saving a little under $7 million in cap space prior to roster displacement. He talked about that phone call with Keyshawn Johnson on the All Facts No Breaks podcast.
“I figured I would get a call; the shocking part about the call is that I was getting cut”, he recalled. “I thought it was gonna be more or less restructure your deal because for me, when I sign a two-year agreement, I plan on giving that organization the best of me to fulfill my end of the bargain”.
Signed to a two-year, $14 million contract, Peterson played out his first season logging 1,096 snaps. He saw time at outside and inside cornerback in the box and even started multiple games at safety. I’m sure a part of him knew he might lose his job—but perhaps not before a negotiation first. Still, Peterson continues to see the potential for landing back in Pittsburgh.
“I had a conversation with Coach [Mike] Tomlin and defensive back coach Grady Brown”, he said. “The dialogue has been great. They said the door is still open for business, so we’ll see how that goes. I know they still have some decisions to make”.
The Steelers recently acquired CB Donte Jackson from the Carolina Panthers in exchange for WR Diontae Johnson. He is the obvious leader in the clubhouse right now to start opposite Joey Porter Jr. at cornerback. Even so, they lack both depth and quality depth with half their room from last season currently unrestricted free agents.
The fifth-overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, Peterson made the Pro Bowl in each of his first eight seasons. He is a three-time first-team All-Pro selection, and he leads all active players in career interceptions with 36. Two of them came as a Steeler, one at cornerback, the other at safety.
If the Steelers were to re-sign him, they are not going to throw him back out on the boundary. He may serve as depth there, but undoubtedly they would prefer him in a more specialized but varied role. While he still has good size, his greatest asset at this point of his career is his mind.
But I don’t know that they see a late-stage William Gay in Peterson. I don’t know that they rush to make any kind of move with Peterson. They may wait until after the draft to revisit him if he is still unsigned. Were that not the case, after all, they probably would have tried to negotiate a way to lower his cap hit. Players don’t often re-sign once you release them that same year.
