5 most overrated Steelers heading into the 2021 NFL season

CB Joe Haden

I want to reiterate that Joe Haden’s appearance on this list doesn’t mean that he’s bad. However, I do believe that he is a bit overrated heading into the 2021 season. Haden’s play dropped in nearly every area that really counts from 2019 to 2020. Though he had 5 interceptions in 2019, he earned just 2 last year.

In addition, he surrendered more passing yards and a better passer rating in coverage despite playing 2 fewer games this year. Haden’s 14.0 yards per completion in coverage was three yards worse than it had been in his previous two seasons, and he missed nearly 15 percent of his tackles in 2020.

Despite Haden nearing the end of his NFL career, both fans and the organization seem to have a lot of trust in him. After losing both Steven Nelson and Mike Hilton this offseason (both significantly younger players), many fans don’t seem to think that this team will skip a beat in the secondary.

Joe Haden turned 32 earlier this offseason, and there is very little reason to expect that he should improve on his 2020 performance. We have seen far greater cornerbacks fizzle out by this point in their careers. Haden plays a very important position, but I’m afraid we are overrating the player at this point.