Should the Steelers Look to Free Agency for Depth in Their Secondary?
According to Kevin Patra from NFL.com, the Pittsburgh Steelers need to prioritize adding a veteran player to play opposite of their young star CB, Joey Porter Jr.
There’s no doubting the resume of Patrick Peterson, who was moved to safety late in the year to account for injuries and a suspension, as noted by Patra. However, it’s worth mentioning that Peterson’s most effective snaps of the 2023 season came from that safety position. With Levi Wallace likely (hopefully) heading for free agency, and with Peterson’s best years at corner behind him, there’s certainly a need for depth at that position, which showed late in the 2023 season.
I speak OFTEN, whether it be on this blog or in other forums and social media platforms, about my confidence in the ability of Cory Trice Jr., even though he hasn’t played a down of professional football to this point. Yet, he could be an absolute stud at the CB position, and the need for a veteran presence can still rear its ugly head, especially if the Steelers elect to cut ties with Patrick Peterson to create cap space.
So, that bears the question: who should the Steelers be targeting should they decide to add some depth in free agency?
The ‘sexy’ name out there that yinzers have been salivating over since the Steelers were eliminated in the wild card round of the playoffs is, coincidentally, playing this weekend in the Super Bowl: L’Jarius Sneed. Ya know…the guy that forced a fumble on the one-inch line in the AFC Championship game, effectively eliminating the Baltimore Ravens. Sneed is a super aggressive corner, and he would look damn good in the black and gold.
As awesome as that would be, the thought of the Steelers signing Sneed is really just a pipe dream. He’s likely to ink a deal north of $14 million a year, for starters. The Steelers already boast one of the most expensive defenses in football, and it’s just unreasonable to expect that they are going to be able to shell out enough money to bring him in, assuming he even decides to leave Kansas City.
Stephon Gilmore. (Photo by Paul Locke)
Another, more reasonable, name out there is Stephon Gilmore. Once considered one of, if not the best corner in football, Gilmore showed that he still has some tread left on his tires in 2023 with the Dallas Cowboys, giving them quality play in the absence of Trevon Diggs.
Gilmore is certainly not the lockdown corner he once was, but he is a Super Bowl Champion, and more than capable of being an above-average CB2 opposite of Joey Porter Jr. There are not a lot of names out there more qualified than Gilmore to act as a mentor for JPJ and Cory Trice Jr.
One name that could compete with Stephon Gilmore in terms of being qualified to mentor these young Pittsburgh Steelers is former Steeler Steven Nelson. It’s not often you see the words ‘injury’ and ‘Steven Nelson’ in the same sentence. Nelson dressed in all 17 games for the Houston Texans in 2023, logging 48 solo tackles and 4 interceptions. The guy just lives on the football field, historically speaking. At age 31, he’s still breaking on the ball at a high level, and is the model of consistency all corners should aspire to be. It would be cool to see JPJ and Cory Trice learn from a guy who played for Pittsburgh in the past, and has been in the league for as long as Steven Nelson has.
As much as I love Patrick Peterson, his performance in 2023 just wasn’t conducive with the aura that comes with his name. Something tells me our secondary is going to look a little different in 2024, hopefully in a good way. What do yinz think? Who, if anyone, would you guys want to bring in to add some depth in that area? Reach out to me on socials and let me know!
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