Patrick Peterson Mulling Position Change

PITTSBURGH — Patrick Peterson feels like he might just be a safety. A cornerback for his entire career, Peterson entered his 13th season hoping to move around and play different spots. The Steelers have done that the moment Joey Porter Jr. got up to speed, playing Peterson in the slot and all around the formation. But Peterson’s first start at safety came against the Bengals on Saturday, and he did well.

In the past, many older, future Hall of Fame cornerbacks have moved to safety to extend their careers. You can look at Rod Woodson, Charles Woodson, Ronde Barber, and others. Patrick Peterson stated that could be something that ends up working for him throughout the rest of his career. His goal was always to play 15 seasons, and while he is on leg 13 of that tour, the move to safety could get him there. He is as intelligent as ever and has elite ball skills, even if the athleticism is as elite as it once was from that spot.

In fact, Patrick Peterson sees himself moving there. On Thursday, he talked to the media and gave his thoughts on a permanent switch to the position, and he seems open to it.

“I said this on my podcast yesterday, but I really feel like I’m a safety at heart. That’s really because I’m a communicator. I’m a big talker. Being at cornerback, it’s tough to communicate with guys because you’re on one side of the ball. But now being at the safety position, having that real key to keep communication to everyone, that felt very natural to me.”

Peterson grabbed an interception and made several other plays over the top to make it much harder on Jake Browning. He even stuck his nose in the fan enough time to justify it. He’s not sure the move will happen permanently just yet, but if he wants to reach his goal of 15 seasons in the league, it might happen.

“We’ll have to see where it goes from here,” Peterson said. “But I really did feel comfortable. I felt great and made a couple of plays to help the team become successful.”

Peterson has all the instincts to keep playing back there. It’s a move that, if made, likely won’t be permanently made until the offseason, but after a solid performance that Peterson put out on Saturday, it’s one that they should look into going into the future.