Ex-Steelers Defender Fires Unprovoked Direct Shot At Ike Taylor

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had many great players wear the black and gold for the franchise. So much so, that a lot of good players go under the radar. One of those guys is former cornerback Ike Taylor, who was a lockdown defender in the secondary for the Steelers throughout the 2000s and early 2010s. Taylor was a key member of two Super Bowl-winning teams in Pittsburgh, although he is not known as one of the best cornerbacks to ever play the game. He is respected by the players he shared the field with, but passive NFL fans probably do not know much about the career of Taylor.

Taylor was a certified CB1 who frequently shadowed the opponents' top receivers, and his leadership was invaluable. He was so beloved by the organization that he has been working with the team as a scout, and he is often seen at practices throughout training camp. 

Taylor was a good player, but he was known throughout his career for his issues catching the football. Thankfully, he played defense, so it wasn't as big of a deal versus if he were on offense, but it is hard to imagine how many more interceptions he would have had, had he possessed some better hands. Another former Steelers cornerback, Steven Nelson, took to Instagram recently to make fun of Taylor. He reposted a video discussing how Taylor used to have some headphones in his helmet so he could listen to music during games, and he trashed Taylor in the caption.

"This is probably why he had feet for hands," Nelson wrote. "You need the sound of the ball when it hits your hands to process the catch! You catching punchlines and dropping picks lmao."

This is not the first time that Taylor has come out and spoke about how he used to listen to music during games, but it is the first time another Steelers player publicly gave him issues for it. Nelson and Taylor were never even on the same team, but there is a chance that they built some sort of relationship with Taylor still being a part of the organization when Nelson played in Pittsburgh during the 2019 and 2020 seasons.

Taylor retired after the 2014 season, and Nelson initially announced his retirement in 2024. However, Nelson did end up signing with the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2024 season. He was only ever on the practice squad, but he did technically come out of retirement. He doesn't currently have any affiliation to any team, but he could wind up calling it a career after all yet again.

Nelson's unnecessary comments on Taylor were relatively out of left field. He went out of his way to post a video himself and dragged Taylor in the caption. Ironically, Taylor did also notch one more career interception than Nelson, and two more Super Bowl rings. 

Steelers' Former Cornerback Ike Taylor Was Crucial For Top Defense

For most of Taylor's career in Pittsburgh, the Steelers had one of the top-ranked defenses in the league. There were some big names on that side of the ball, but Taylor was truly one of the key factors in helping that unit play as well as it did. He was a true leader within the locker room, and former Defensive Coordinator Dick LeBeau has spoken publicly about just how important Taylor was to those teams for Pittsburgh.

Nelson was in Pittsburgh for an extremely limited amount of time, while Taylor cemented himself as a great in Pittsburgh. Two Super Bowl rings and an interception in Super Bowl XL as a cherry on top is nothing to overlook. If this beef grows at all, it is safe to say the entire fan base will be on Taylor's side.

What did you think about Nelson's post? Let us know in the comments below!

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