Steelers’ DeShon Elliott says Dolphins were ‘very soft’ in 2023 and lacked ‘mentally strong individuals’

Pittsburgh Steelers safety DeShon Elliott is looking to get revenge on his original team, the Baltimore Ravens, when the AFC North rivals meet on Sunday. Meanwhile, he’s already criticized his other former team, telling the “Punch Line Podcast” on Wednesday that the 2023 Miami Dolphins were “soft.”

“I haven’t been able to play against Baltimore like I wanted to,” Elliott said, looking ahead to Sunday’s Ravens-Steelers matchup. “Because last year I played for a team that was very soft… There were some guys that were tough, but the majority of the team didn’t have mentally strong individuals. So being on a team with a whole team of mentally strong guys. ..this is going to be fun, man.”

Elliott started 15 games for the 2023 Dolphins, who started 11-4, only to lose their final three games, including a wild-card playoff matchup against the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. One of those losses was a 56-19 loss to the Ravens, for whom Elliott previously played four seasons.

Now with Pittsburgh, Elliott told his former Ravens teammate Marlon Humphrey, who hosts the show “Punch Line,” that he is enjoying the “winning culture” that Miami lacked. It’s a mirror, he argued, of the culture he also experienced in Baltimore, where he started a combined 22 games.

“I think the only thing I’m worried about is the 2024 Dolphins,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said when asked about the comments later Wednesday. “And I think every team’s ability to be mentally tough in an NFL season is definitely tested, and I think… our team played a very close game the last three weeks, and ended up finding a way to win last week. ….Cool, did you say that on a podcast?

Elliott is not the first player to question the Dolphins’ strength in recent years. Signing with Miami this summer, former rival and Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer told reporters I used to do just that.

“Playing against this team in recent years, you get the feeling that okay, if you get to the top of this team, they might retire,” he said, although he acknowledged that he hoped to help redefine the club’s strategy. culture.