The Steelers defeated the Browns in a must-win game in Pittsburgh last Sunday. Here is what cornerback Steven Nelson had to say about a pair of Browns receivers.
Steelers cornerback Steven Nelson has been very good this year. So good, in fact, that he doesn’t have an issue with calling things as he sees it.
Pittsburgh defeated Cleveland this week in a game that was highlighted by another dominant defensive performance. While Nelson isn’t often the center of attention, he has held his own against the competition this year – that includes getting the best of Browns receivers Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry.
Here is what the Steelers cornerback had to say about the pair of star receivers, according to ESPN:
I’m usually not a fan of players calling out others from rivals teams. Fortunately, the Steelers have already played the Browns this season, so his comments shouldn’t fuel the fire too much (at least not this year).
However, Nelson wasn’t exactly wrong. While Beckham and Landry are good receivers who are regarded by most as one of the better tandems in the league, it wasn’t hard for Pittsburgh to make them look like average Joe’s on Sunday.
The two offensive weapons combined for 105 yards on 17 targets (6.1 yards per target). Odell Beckham chipped in just 29 of those yards for 9.7 yards per catch.
Steven Nelson isn’t the second coming of Darrelle Revis, but he has been rock solid for the Steelers this sesaon. According to advanced analytics from Pro Football Reference, Nelson has allowed quarterbacks to complete just 49.1 percent of targets thrown his directions for a combined quarterback rating of 67.7 allowed on the season.
Nelson is currently the 11th-rated NFL cornerback, according to Pro Football Focus. His 77.8 overall grade is higher than players like Tre’Davious White, Jason McCourty, Marlon Humphry, and even Defensive Player of the Year candidate, Stephon Gilmore.
It’s probably not wise of Steven Nelson to make these types of statements, but he is clearly confident in his abilities to stick with some of the best receivers in the league. Let’s hope that trend continues as the Steelers look for a spot in the 2019 NFL Playoffs.