Matt Freed, Post-Gazette The Steelers' Ike Taylor has emerged as one of the league's rising young cornerbacks. Click photo for larger image. More Coverage: Steelers Notebook: Painful memory for Vikings' QB

Ike Taylor will not be assigned to follow a Minnesota Vikings wide receiver tomorrow in the Metrodome, not like he did last week against Chicago's Muhsin Muhammad or earlier this season against Cincinnati's Chad Johnson. Mainly because the Vikings don't leave one receiver on the field long enough to shadow.

The Vikings have a receiving group that is deployed more like a hockey team making line changes, weaving five different receivers in and out of the offense with varying measures of success.

"A whole arsenal of receivers," said Taylor, a third-year cornerback. "And all of them are playing with a whole lot of confidence, especially No. 18."

The reference was to wide receiver Koren Robinson, curiously, the receiver with the fewest catches among the group (17). But, in the past five games, Robinson has scored in a variety of different ways for the Vikings (8-5) -- an 86-yard kick return, an 80-yard reception and a 13-yard run.

But he is not alone. The Vikings also use Travis Taylor, Marcus Robinson, Nate Burleson and rookie No. 1 Troy Williamson to complement tight end Jermaine Wiggins, their leading receiver. Williamson (No. 7), Koren Robinson (No. 9, Seattle) and Taylor (No. 10, Baltimore) were all top-10 draft choices.

If Taylor were assigned to follow one receiver -- a defensive tactic the Steelers have used on three occasions this season -- he might spend more time on the Vikings' bench than on the field in the 1 p.m. game in Minneapolis.

"They're all big, they're all pretty fast and they're all good at the ball," safety Chris Hope said. "You got to keep your eye on all of them."

"They all have different roles," said Vikings quarterback Brad Johnson, who has led Minnesota to six consecutive victories since replacing Daunte Culpepper as the starter. "It's unfortunate for them because no one gets the playing time they really want or as many balls as they want."

Which is why Taylor, who has rapidly emerged as one of the league's rising young cornerbacks, will line up on the left side of the Steelers' defense and stay there, something he has not done the past two weeks.

Last week, he was assigned to shadow Muhammad in an attempt to take away the Bears' only receiving threat. Muhammad finished with eight catches for 91 yards, including receptions of 12, 15 and 21 yards on the three third-down conversions the Bears managed against the Steelers. Only one of those third-down catches, though, was against Taylor, who did not cover Muhammad when he lined up in the slot.

Two weeks ago, the Steelers used Taylor to follow Chad Johnson, just as they did a month earlier when the Bengals' Pro Bowl receiver was held to three catches until he caught a meaningless 47-yarder in the final two minutes. It was after that game that Johnson called Taylor one of the best young corners in the game. He reiterated that before the second game at Heinz Field, when Taylor held him to five catches for 54 yards.

And Taylor appreciated the compliment.

"It meant a great deal coming from a receiver, an elite NFL receiver," Taylor said. "He kind of surprised me when he said that. I wasn't expecting that coming from his mouth.

"And he wasn't blowing smoke. He stuck to his word [the second time]. He's a tough receiver to cover because of his intangibles. But it's also a challenge for me."

The Steelers have not issued such a challenge to a cornerback since Rod Woodson was in their secondary, testament to the trust and confidence they have in Taylor's abilities.

And it is not just his speed and coverage skills that make him a good choice to shadow top receivers. Taylor is a sure tackler -- he is fourth on the team with 86 tackles -- who does a good job not letting receivers get yards after a catch.

"He's most definitely talented," said cornerback Deshea Townsend. "Ike can run with any receiver in the NFL."

"He's our most athletic corner, and I think it's a growing process for him to be able to see what the best receivers out there can do," said safety Troy Polamalu.

It has been a rapid ascent for Taylor, a fourth-round pick in 2003 who didn't start playing cornerback until his senior season at Louisiana-Lafayette. He has gone from being inactive for three of the first five games in 2004 to a starter who is entrusted with slowing some of the league's best receivers, a turnaround that has surprised even Taylor.

Curiously, his only mistake last week came when he wasn't guarding Muhammad. Taylor had the ball go right through his hands on a 43-yard completion to wide receiver Bernard Berrian to the Steelers' 1 that set up the Bears' only touchdown.

"Now I'm in position to where sometimes coach gives out an assignment to defend one of the team's top receivers," said Taylor. "That says a lot. It's nothing else but a confidence booster, knowing a coaching staff can rely on me. And I like the challenge."