Pittsburgh Steelers must let Ike Taylor go
Cornerback Ike Taylor will go down as one of the best defensive backs in the storied history of the Pittsburgh Steelers, as he was a consistent anchor at the back end of the secondary and an integral leader on some of the best defenses in recent memory. Unfortunately, Taylor’s play has slipped badly over the past few seasons, and it’s come to the point where he’s been arguably the worst starting cornerback in the NFL.
It looks like his time with the Steelers is finally coming to a close, as he was unbearably poor in 2014; even the Steelers decided to bench him at the tail end of the season despite an overall lack of quality at the position. Per ESPN NFL Nation’s Scott Brown, the team is “unlikely” to re-sign Taylor, which is different from what we’ve heard in past seasons.
Up until the end of the 2014 season, it always seemed like the Steelers were in denial about just how much Taylor has declined, and it’s scary how often the team would trot him out as the No. 1 cornerback. How many starting corners allow 20 of 26 passes thrown at them in five appearances to be caught? How many have zero picks with four touchdowns allowed and just two PDs in five appearances? Per Pro Football Focus, Taylor also allowed just over 16 yards per reception, a 157.2 QB Rating on throws into his coverage, and a catch rate over 75%.
In short, Taylor’s stats were as ghastly as they come, and he had four missed tackles compared to his 16 in total. These numbers are untenable, and it’s entirely obvious that the Steelers can do better at the position than a 34 year-old, who will be 35 before the season starts, whose chances of bouncing back are as close to zero as possible.
Brown’s statement that the Steelers are “unlikely” to keep Taylor for the 2015 season isn’t surprising, and it will be interesting to see if that “unlikely” turns into a straight up “no” at some point before the start of free agency.
An impending free agent, Taylor has been so poor that the Steelers could easily do better even if most of their cornerbacks are underwhelming at this point. None of them played as poorly as Taylor, and the fact of the matter is that I would rather spend a roster spot on a young, unproven UFA with some upside than someone who clearly can’t play at a remotely useful level at this stage of his career.
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Despite how awful he’s looked, it’s tough not to feel bad for Taylor. This is a guy who put everything on the line for the Pittsburgh Steelers organization, took a nasty injury last season, and was once one of the league’s best cornerbacks. He’s a “Ring of Honor” candidate for one of the best franchises in NFL history, but none of that matters now. The Steelers have to look to do what’s best for their organization, and they honestly should have parted ways with Taylor two offseasons ago. Now? Well, the decision is just too easy.
Taylor will be 35 next season, and there were only three 35-year-old defensive backs who played last season: Ryan Clark, Terence Newman, and Charles Woodson. Clark was flat-out terrible for a second-straight season, Newman was a below-average CB, and Woodson is no longer a starting-caliber safety despite what box-score mongers will tell you.
Newman and Woodson were surprisingly useful, but Taylor is like Clark at this point; he’s a veteran defensive back who can’t play well anymore, and the Steelers should let him go after remembering all the while remembering the good times they had together several years ago. Outside from memories, there’s nothing else to hang onto, and the Steelers next move should be to overhaul the cornerback position and hope Cortez Allen can bounce back.
Taylor stated that he’s fine if 2014 ends up being his last year and has interest in joining the Steelers organization in another capacity, and I hope he does just that. He had a great career with the Steelers, did some incredible things for the organization, and is a likable and loyal guy who could help the organization out in a non-playing role.
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