Tag: DeShon Elliott

Dolphins defenders take umbrage with ‘soft’ comment from ex teammate

While Mike McDaniel and Tua Tagovailoa brushed off comments about the team being “soft,” Dolphins defenders weren’t as forgiving.

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa shrugged off comments made by DeShon Elliott about the team’s mental toughness. Dolphins defenders weren’t as forgiving.

In a podcast appearance, Elliott — who spent 2023 with Miami and is now a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers — said the Dolphins were “soft as [expletive]” and mostly made up of “not mentally tough individuals.”

“Honestly man, if you want to call somebody out, go ahead and do that and drop names, but other than that, it’s whatever makes your boat float, whatever allows you to have a good night of sleep,” Dolphins safety Jevón Holland told reporters Wednesday. “But if you’re not naming nobody, you’re not calling nobody out, then all the rest of the comments are just empty. You’re just talking at that point.”

While Elliott’s criticisms were more pointed, he wasn’t the first to make that kind of statement. His replacement in the starting lineup, Jordan Poyer, gave a similar review of the Dolphins just a few months after joining the team in the offseason.

“Playing against this team over the past few years, you kind of get a sense of, ‘OK, if you get on top of this team, they might fold,’” the former Buffalo Bills safety told reporters in July. “This is just being honest, so what is that that happens in those moments where we get hit in the mouth?”

Elliott spent one season with the Dolphins after beginning his career with the Baltimore Ravens.

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Ex-Dolphins DB says team was ‘soft as [expletive]’ in 2023

A Steelers defensive back who spent 2023 with the Dolphins says he’s glad to now be on a team with “mentally tough guys.”

Pittsburgh Steelers safety DeShon Elliott only spent one season with the Miami Dolphins and apparently he wasn’t impressed with their mental fortitude.

“This will be very fun,” Elliott said of the Steelers’ upcoming game against the Baltimore Ravens on the Punch Line Podcast. “I haven’t been able to play against Baltimore the way I wanted to because last year I played for a team that was soft as [expletive]. … There were some guys that were tough, but the majority of the team, they were not mentally tough individuals.

“So to be on a full team of mentally tough guys going against another mentally tough team, AFC North ball, it’s going to be fun, man.”

It isn’t a new critique of the 2023 Dolphins. Elliott’s replacement in the starting lineup, Jordan Poyer, had a similar take on Miami in the offseason after joining the team as a free agent earlier this year.

“Playing against this team over the past few years, you kind of get a sense of, ‘OK, if you get on top of this team, they might fold,’” the former Buffalo Bills safety told reporters in July. “This is just being honest, so what is that that happens in those moments where we get hit in the mouth?”

Elliott, 27, began his career with the Ravens and made a one-year stop with the Detroit Lions before joining the Dolphins on a one-year deal in 2023. In his sole season in Miami, the safety made 15 starts and recorded one interception, one tackle for loss, and 82 total tackles.

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Steelers’ safety is ranked 1st by PFF in run defense

Steelers’ safety DeShon Elliott has been great through seven games of football. PFF has recognized him as the best run defending safety.

Pro Football Focus has decided to give Pittsburgh Steelers safety DeShon Elliott his flowers. The former Raven was acquired in free agency by Pittsburgh during the 2024 offseason and has made his presence felt immediately. While Steelers free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick hasn’t had his usual success this season, struggling to record any splash plays, Elliott has played at an elite level thus far. 

PFF has an interesting reputation in Pittsburgh, as the polarizing grades of Steelers players have sometimes left a lot to be desired. However, Elliott is currently being graded by the organization as the best safety in the 2024 NFL season against the run. 

While many were aware of the talent Elliott possessed, no one could have truly predicted the impact the Pittsburgh strong safety would make when he signed his two-year, $6.0 million dollar contract back in March.

Elliott is a key component to this Steelers’ defense and why it has played at such an elite level in 2024, and will look to continue his dominance against the run when his team takes on the NY Giants in Monday Night Football, on October 28th at 8:15 PM EST.

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Surprising player is the Steelers best offseason addition

The Steelers added several new players this offseason who have had significant impacts on the team.

The success of the Pittsburgh Steelers this season has been due in large part to a great number of new additions to the roster. A case could be made for several players both in free agency and via the NFL draft who have been the best addition of the offseason but for us, the signing of safety DeShon Elliott ranks at the top.

Elliott has proven to be an excellent addition to a defense that’s been in need of a more versatile safety next to Minkah Fitzpatrick for several years. Elliott is adept at working in the box as a run defender but is fearless in coverage as well.

On the season, Elliott has 27 tackles, one interception, one fumble recovery and three passes defended. According to Pro Football Focus, Elliott has an overall grade of 81.7 on the season. This ranks seventh-best in the NFL. His run defense grade of 91.3 is tops among safeties.

Of course we could talk about quarterback Justin Fields as a huge addition as well but it’s hard to diminish what Elliott has meant to this defense.

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Former Steeler could be back in the Steeler lineup vs Raiders

Terrell Edmunds could start for the Steelers on Sunday.

This week the Pittsburgh Steelers will be without safety Damontae Kazee Kazee suffered an ankle injury last week in warmups before the Steelers took on the Dallas Cowboys and tried to play through it. The injury got worse this will force him out of this week’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Without Elliott in the lineup, former and current Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds could be pressed into action. The Steelers signed Edmunds to the practice squad just over a week ago but his familiarity with the defense could allow defensive coordinator Teryl Austin to get him on the field more quickly.

On Wednesday, Kazee missed practice along with starting strong safety DeShon Elliott who is dealing with an ankle injury of his own. If Kazee and Elliott miss Sunday’s game, Edmunds could start alongside Minkah Fitzpatrick.

The Steelers selected Edmunds in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft. He started 75 games over six seasons with the Steelers. Edmunds bounced around between three teams since then but he’s back and could be a big part of the Steelers defense on Sunday.

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Steelers defender calls WR George Pickens a ‘Freak of nature’

DeShon Elliott heaps praise on Steelers wide receiver George Pickens.

Whether by design or not, the Pittsburgh Steelers have made wide receiver George Pickens the focal point of the passing offense this season. 2023 was a breakout season for Pickens with 63 receptions for a remarkable 1,140 yards.

Pickens’ ability to make spectacular, almost superhuman plays is what sets him apart from other NFL receivers. Teammate DeShon Elliott was on The Sick Podcast and gushed about Pickens’ abilities.

Elliott said that he’s never seen a freak of nature like Pickens and this is despite having played with Miami Dolphins star wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Hill is one of the truly elite playmakers in the league.

We love the highlight-reel plays Pickens makes but to be a true No. 1 receiver he is going to have to be the guy who makes the routine plays as well against top coverages.

The Steelers take on the Atlanta Falcons this week in the season opener and we will get a quick look at Pickens in this new offense.

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Steelers S DeShon Elliott on an 18-game regular season: ‘They don’t pay us enough’

Most players would only support an 18-game season if they were paied more.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has made it clear he would prefer if the league played 18 regular season games and only play two preseason games. He considers that a zero sum swap that would benefit the NFL. And by benefit, he of course means it would make the league a lot of money.

But how do players feel about the idea of playing another meaningful game? The NFL just expanded from 16 to 17 regular season games in 2021 and now just three years later we are talking about adding another. The NFL expanded the regular season from 14 to 16 way back in 1978 and the league was fine with it for decades.

ESPN polled a variety of players around the NFL including Pittsburgh Steelers safeties Damontae Kazee and DeShon Elliott. The two had very different responses to the idea of an 18-game regular season.

“Whatever the league gives you, man, you just got to adjust to it,” Kazee. “I got to this point in my life, I’m an old head now, about to be 31. You just got to adjust to everything and go on from there. … Them giving us 18 games, I mean, I wouldn’t complain about it.”

Elliott adamantly disagreed. They don’t pay us enough,” Elliott said.

Money is exactly what it’s all about. There’s no way you could justify paying players the same but subbing out a meaningless preseason game with a regular season replacement. Plus there would have to be serious logistical changes including the potential of a second bye week for all 32 teams.

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NFL Network calls new Steelers safety most underappreciated player on the team

The Steelers quitely added safety DeShon Elliott in free agency.

When it comes to the Pittsburgh Steelers, there are a handful of guys on either side of the football who get all the praise heaped on them. Defensively, we hear about T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward, Patrick Queen, Joey Porter Jr. and Minkah Fitzpatrick all the time. But who is the most underappreciated guy on the Steelers defense?

NFL Network named the most underappreciated player on every roster and for the Steelers he went with new safety DeShon Elliott. Here’s what he had to say about Elliott:

Now on a fourth team in Year 7 of his professional career, Elliott’s vagabond existence might lead some to question his reliability, but that’d be a mistake. While injuries did impact multiple seasons at Elliott’s first NFL stop in Baltimore, whenever the man played for the Ravens, he proved dependable. And over the past two seasons, he capably started 13 games for the Lions and 15 games for the Dolphins, providing the kind of rock-solid returns at defensive back that should never be overlooked in today’s pass-happy league. Elliott’s ability to seamlessly transition between teams and schemes is a testament to his versatility. Boasting ample experience as a free safety, strong safety and nickelback…

Elliott was definitely an underrated addition in a very bus[lawrence-auto-related count=3]y offseason. His health will be the most important factor for his ability to impact the defense this season. This is even assuming Elliott can beat out incumbent Damontae Kazee for the starting spot at strong safety.

 

Dolphins projected to have 10 picks in 2025 NFL draft

The Dolphins haven’t had much draft capital in recent offseasons, but that’s set to change in 2025.

The Miami Dolphins haven’t had much draft capital in recent offseasons, but that should change in 2025. Even after trading away a future third-round pick on Saturday, the Dolphins are still projected to have 10 selections in the 2025 NFL draft.

For now, they officially own seven picks:

  • First round
  • Second round
  • Fourth round
  • Fifth round (via Broncos)
  • Fifth round
  • Seventh round (via Bears)
  • Seventh round

The Dolphins are expected to add three more when the NFL announces compensatory selections next year.

Losing Christian Wilkins and Robert Hunt to nine-digit contracts in free agency will almost definitely result in a pair of extra third-round picks getting added to the Dolphins’ list of assets. General manager Chris Grier said the team made its trade for Jaylen Wright, in part, because it expects to get those two selections next year.

“You can’t use the compensatory picks until this time next year, so the ones we anticipate were all protected,” Grier said Saturday. “But it gave us some flexibility to move around, as we talked about us being active and trying to move up in the draft previously.”

While many of Miami’s other free agency losses were negated by a few of the team’s additions, Over The Cap projects the Dolphins will also get a seventh-round pick for the departure of safety DeShon Elliott.

The Dolphins haven’t received any compensatory selections since the 2020 NFL draft and haven’t had a third-rounder since 2017.

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Dolphins currently projected to get 3 compensatory picks in 2025

While the Dolphins lost Christian Wilkins, Robert Hunt, and others in free agency, that should mean more draft capital in 2025.

It’s been a few years since the Miami Dolphins received a compensatory draft pick. The last time was in 2020 when the team received fourth- and seventh-round selections for losing Ja’Wuan James and Brandon Bolden.

Five years later, the Dolphins are in line to finally get some compensatory picks again.

According to Over The Cap’s projections, the sizable contracts that Christian Wilkins and Robert Hunt signed with the Las Vegas Raiders and Carolina Panthers, respectively, are both likely to earn the Dolphins third-round picks in 2025.

While OTC also projects Miami will receive a seventh-round selection, that one is much less certain. For now, the additions of Jordyn Brooks, Aaron Brewer, and Kendall Fuller cancel out the losses of Andrew Van Ginkel, Raekwon Davis, and Brandon Jones. That leaves the contract signed by DeShon Elliott as just rich enough to earn a seventh-rounder.

But if the Dolphins make another move or just a few more free agents get deals elsewhere, that pick could disappear.

Either way, two third-round picks is quite a coup for Miami and will mean the Dolphins have a lot of draft capital to worth with next year.

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