At the AFC Coaches Breakfast at the NFL Owners Meetings on Monday morning, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said that the team is open to bringing back CB Patrick Peterson, Dale Lolley of Steelers.com wrote on Twitter.
“We’re open to it as well,” Tomlin said about bringing back Peterson per Lolley on Steelers.com. “But, you know, there’s so much business in front of us and we just felt like it was appropriate to be transparent with him to give him an opportunity to assess what’s out there totality.”
Lolley added that the move could come down the road, which would make sense. The Steelers’ cornerback room right now is a weakness, and the team doesn’t have a reliable slot corner on its roster, a position that Peterson did play at times last season. Pittsburgh released the veteran corner this offseason to save some money, but he said recently on his podcast that the door might be open for a return, and Tomlin’s statement seems to echo that.
The only addition that Pittsburgh has made at corner this offseason is adding Donte Jackson in the trade that sent Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers. While Peterson is older and not nearly the same athlete that he once was, he played all over the field last season and helped fill in at safety when the Steelers had major depth issues due to injury and suspension late in the season. He’s a high-IQ player who also helped mentor Joey Porter Jr. and signing the eight-time Pro Bowler for less money in a reduced role would make some measure of sense for Pittsburgh.
The Steelers will likely wait to see what they do in the draft before deciding whether or not to bring Peterson back, but if they still aren’t comfortable with the position in late April, then going the veteran route makes sense. During Day 3 of the draft last season, the Steelers made the move to bring in Chandon Sullivan, who also worked in the slot for Pittsburgh last season and could probably be looked at as another player the team may look to bring back.
But Peterson feels more likely because he’s older and he can continue to be a solid mentor for Porter and whatever other young cornerback the team may bring in, likely via the draft, and has some positional versatility. He also seemed to genuinely enjoy his time playing in Pittsburgh and could continue to be a mentor and a good veteran presence, which is never a bad thing to have in the locker room.
The Steelers still have a bunch of holes to fill, and cornerback is a position that will continue to be addressed throughout the offseason. We’ll see if that includes bringing Peterson back to Pittsburgh.
