Peterson is one of a few struggling first round picks
Oct 27, 2011, 10:51 PM | Updated: Oct 28, 2011, 12:01 am
The Cardinals secondary has been a sore spot so far this
season, which was to be expected with the amount of youth
being forced to play.
However, most probably expected first-round pick Patrick
Peterson to be a little better than he has, as the fifth-
overall selection has recorded 32 tackles and one
interception while being burned for big passes on multiple
occasions.
So, if you think Peterson is struggling, you’re right.
Pro Football Focus has graded
all the first rounders through Week 7, and Arizona’s
top pick has been one of the worst this season.
Possibly Interesting Stat: Has allowed 69.4% of
the balls thrown his way to be complete.Observations: Peterson may go on to be the next
shutdown cornerback in the NFL, and if he does it will
mean looking back at his first six NFL starts and wonder
how he could ever struggle so much. Simply getting beat a
little too often, struggling to replicate the success of
2010 rookie’s like Devin McCourty and Joe Haden.
On the plus side, it does appear that the rookie is
starting to catch on. He had arguably his best game as a
pro Sunday against the Steelers, not allowing star Mike
Wallace to burn him for any big plays.
However, just being not-bad won’t be good enough for the
former LSU star, since the Cardinals will need him to
develop into the shutdown corner they currently lack.