The Steelers came out of “left field” to sign former Cardinals and Vikings Patrick Peterson, adding a veteran presence to the secondary.
Monday’s opening of NFL free agency led to plenty of surprising agreements between teams and players, but one of the most unexpected involved the Steelers and Patrick Peterson.
The eight-time Pro Bowl cornerback spent last season with the Minnesota Vikings. Now he’s trading purple for black and gold, as reported by Ian Rapoport and confirmed by the man himself on his podcast, All Things Covered.
He even admitted that the Steelers were a surprise to him.
“It was kind of out of left field,” Peterson said on the podcast. “My agent was doing his job. He was calling to see what teams wanted to have me in their locker room.”
Pittsburgh answered the buzzer, swooping in to draw Peterson away from Minnesota and others.
Patrick Peterson wants the Steelers to use him as Cameron Sutton
The angle doesn’t know exactly how the Steelers plan to deploy it, but it did note how Joe Haden and Cameron Sutton were used in Pittsburgh.
“I kind of picture myself as those guys,” Peterson said. “Being a guy who can be applied in a game plan, not being a guy who lines up to one side of the field, being able to mix and match different positions.”
Peterson has started all 17 games for the Vikings this past year. He had five interceptions and 15 pass defenses to go along with a career-high 66 tackles and three tackles for loss.
However, he put those numbers on a Minnesota defense that ranked near the bottom of the league in points and yards allowed. He would join a defense that ranked 10th in points allowed and 13th in yards allowed.
The Steelers hope his veteran presence will help make up for the loss of Sutton, who is heading to Detroit in free agency, and William Jackson, who was recently left out.
Peterson will be 33 when the 2023 season begins.
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/diarioas/B6QCFNYUMORANJMATPXEXR64QM.jpg)
