New Cam Sutton? Patrick Peterson Could Fill His Role in 2023

PITTSBURGH — Patrick Peterson came to Pittsburgh with the idea that he would play everywhere. He threw out the idea the very first time he talked to Mike Tomlin about playing for the Steelers. Then, at his first press conference, it was the very thing he harped on so much.

While he has only played on the outside for most of his career, Peterson wants to play in the slot, in safety-like situations, and play on the outside altogether. Does that sound familiar? Sure, it’s the exact same role that Sutton played. Right out of the gate, it seems that is going to happen.

When secondary coach Grady Brown talked to the media on Tuesday and said that very thing could happen. The team needs someone to replace Sutton and there are not many players that can do all of the roles he does, but Peterson seems up to the task of at least trying to do that.

“Well, we lost Cam Sutton, so you need someone to replace him,” Brown said. “Very much so, Pat has been open to doing a lot of different things and wearing a lot of hats. Coach Tomlin let us know when we first signed him that was going to happen. When you have versatility, what I’ve learned, we can not let the quarterbacks be comfortable pre-snap. We need to affect them pre-snap. When you have guys that can move around there’s some anxiety for the quarterback, that’s what we want.”

Patrick Peterson confirmed during OTAs that he was starting to rep a bit in the slot. It’s hard to fully get a guy like Peterson entrenched enough on the slot without getting him in there early. Even as a veteran, he has no experience playing there. While most guys shake off ever playing in the slot, it seems like Peterson has seemingly embraced it. For him, it’s a fact of why he signed with the Steelers. So, expect to see him play in those verstile roles and be a guy who can move all around the defense.