4 outdated Steelers philosophies that no longer mesh with today's NFL
By Tommy Jaggi
2. Valuing experience over athletic traits in the secondary
This is one philosophy that irks me to no end. For some reason or another, Mike Tomlin has been under the impression that he can simply bring in aging veterans from free agency to fill out his secondary, but this has proven to be disastrous time and again.
During the 2023 offseason, the Steelers went this route by letting Cameron Sutton sign a lofty contract with the Lions and bringing in a 33-year-old Patrick Peterson. Needless to say, Peterson underwhelmed (and nobody should have expected much more at this stage of his career).
Peterson wasn't the only aging veteran he relied on. Next to Minkah Fitzpatrick, Tomlin expected a combination of Damontae Kazee and Keanu Neal to be enough at the safety position. Meanwhile, Levi Wallace was the starter for way too long at right cornerback before finally making the switch.
The Steelers found out very quickly how much youth and athletic traits matter at the cornerback position, as Joey Porter Jr. was easily the best CB on the team the moment he stepped onto the field. In today's game filled with quick-passing NFL offenses, Pittsburgh cannot be naive enough to believe that they can get by with slow and aging players in their secondary. This philosophy needs to die immediately.