Steven Nelson Seeking Recognition in 2020
PITTSBURGH -- Steven Nelson only forced one interception in 2019, but it was one interception more than touchdowns he allowed. The Steelers cornerback is entering his second season in Pittsburgh and wants to use it to prove to others what he sees in himself.
As Nelson enters training camp at Heinz Field, he has a list of goals he'd like to accomplish. Earlier this offseason, he mentioned the ultimate goal is to win a Super Bowl, but creating more turnovers and making a Pro Bowl are also on the list.
And then, there's recognition.
"I definitely feel like I'm underrated," Nelson told media on a Zoom call. "I think a lot of people feel that way as well. And this year, one of my goals is to be recognized as one of the better corners in the league. My role on this defense, just being a professional, veteran guy that going to come to work and do my job so we can all reach that same goal."
Despite not allowing a touchdown last year, Nelson still seems to be overlooked amongst the best cornerbacks. His running mate Joe Haden was named to the 2019 Pro Bowl while Nelson's season ended before the playoffs.
"It's funny, I think it was 2018 I had four interceptions but I gave up a lot," Nelson said. "So statistically, you would say 2018 is my best season, but the last year I didn't give up a touchdown and there was a lot of other smaller details in the stat line that would probably make a good argument."
Senior Defensive Assistant Teryl Austin worked with Nelson for the first time last season and already knows what he's going to bring weekly for his football team. He also knows he's underrated.
"Steve is a good player. He likes to be underrated because that gives him that little chip he needs and I like that," Austin laughed. "But Steve is a good player. What you're going to get from Steve, you're getting that every game. He is a tremendous worker, a tremendous pro. When you have a guy like that, you don't worry about what you're putting in, how you're putting it in or what you're going to do because you know he's going to execute that at a fairly high level. And I think that's the one thing that he does. When he plays, his level of play does not fluxuate very much week-to-week. And when I say that, it's in a good way, because he's got a high level of play which you feel confident and comfortable with what's going on."
Nelson is equally as concerned about his teammates, though.
"The secondary overall, we just have good guys from top to bottom," he continued. "Starters and non-starters, guys that can come in and play. We have Minkah [Fitzpatrick] back there, we saw what he did last year. We got Joe [Haden] who is still ballin' at a very high level. Mike Hilton, Cam Sutton, those guys are very skilled at what they do on the inside, and Terrell Edmunds can give you a versatile look as well.
"We just have a lot of guys that can get out there and make plays."
Despite leading the NFL in turnovers and sending two members of the secondary to represent the AFC, Nelson feels this group can improve.
"Electively, we all want to be a step better from last year," Nelson said. "I think the great thing that we have on our side is that most of our guys are back this year. That'll give us two years of playing with each other. We just want to improve from last year. I think last year we did a great job, but there's always room for improvement and we're all on the same page with that."
Improvements won't be able to shut down national attention for long. The Steelers' secondary has names hunting for accolades in 2020. Eventually, Nelson feels their play will be too loud to ignore.
"We all feel that way. We all feel like underdogs," said Nelson. "I think that gives us the extra chip on our shoulder. We're not the type of guys to be satisfied with the previous season, so we've been all working hard to try to get recognition. Like I say, 'work hard, we're all making a great statement for our team.'"
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
