Taking Stock of the Steelers 75-Man Roster

Yesterday, the Steelers announced their firsts round of roster cuts. In order to get down to the necessary 75-man roster for the final preseason game, the Steelers cut TE Cameron Clear, DE Niko Davis, G Miles Dieffenbach, WR Kenzel Doe, WR CJ Goodwin, TE Ray Hamilton, RB Braylon Heard, DE Joe Kruger, DT Joe Okafor, G Colin Rahrig, CB Jordan Sullen, OT Kevin Whimpey and SS Ian Wild. Mike Adams was placed on the PUP List and Senquez Golson and Garrett Hartley were placed on IR. The team also traded for Jaguars Kicker Josh Scobee.

With just one preseason games remaining, the number of roster battles is dwindling. After the Carolina game, the Steelers will have to release 22 more players to pare the roster down to 53. Le’Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant will not count against the roster during their suspensions, so that will free up two additional Week 1 roster spots. Also, Maurkice Pouncey will likely land on the IR-Designated for Return list which will free up another roster spot.

Here’s a look at the roster situation heading into the final preseason game. I broke down each position by “Roster Locks,” players that “Should Make the Team” barring injury or off-field incidents within the next week, and those on the “Roster Bubble.” Final roster cuts must be made by Saturday, September 5 at 4:00pm. Over the past few seasons, the Steelers have been active participants in the free agency market after roster cut-downs and have acquired players like Zoltan Mesko, Antwon Blake and BW Webb. Therefore, the final 53 that are on the team on Saturday at 4:01pm may not be the 53 that enter New England next Thursday night.

Quarterback

Roster Locks (1): B. Roethlisberger
Should Make the Team (2): M. Vick, L. Jones

The only movement here was Bruce Gradkowski’s season-ending injury which led to the signing of Mike Vick. Vick showed enough against Buffalo (and will probably get to play more against Carolina) that he is a capable NFL backup. The Steelers will keep 3 quarterbacks and unless there is a significant injury to Vick or Jones against the Panthers, it will be these three.

Running Back

Roster Locks (2): L. Bell, D. Williams
Should Make the Team (1): D. Archer
Bubble: W. Johnson, R. Nix, J. Harris

Josh Harris’ foot injury and subsequent terrible game against Buffalo put his roster position in jeopardy. Le’Veon Bell will not count against the 53-man roster during his two-game suspension so the Steelers have some flex space to keep an extra back. If Harris underperforms against Carolina, the Steelers may go out and try to find a running back on the free agent market. For better or worse, the Steelers aren’t ready to give up on Dri Archer yet so he’ll make the team, barring injury. The roster battle to watch here is Will Johnson vs Roosevelt Nix for the fullback position. Both have gotten looks with the first-team offense and it is hard to tell who has the upper hand right now.

Wide Receiver

Roster Locks (3): A. Brown, M. Wheaton, M. Bryant
Should Make the Team (2): S. Coates, D. Heyward-Bey
Bubble: T. Murphy, S Phillips

The Steelers traditionally have only kept 5 wide receivers. The top five seem fairly set in stone on the depth chart. With Martavis Bryant’s suspension, the door is open for either Shakim Phillips or QB-to-WR conversion project Tyler Murphy to find their way onto the final 53-man roster.

Tight End

Roster Locks (2): H. Miller, M. Spaeth
Should Make the Team (1): J. James

Ray Hamilton and Cameron Clear were both cut, leaving only 3 tight ends on the roster. They will all make the team, barring any kind of injury.

Offensive Line

Roster Locks (6): K. Beachum, R. Foster, M. Pouncey, D. DeCastro, M. Gilbert, C. Wallace
Should Make the Team (3): D. Legursky, A. Villanueva, M. Adams (PUP)
Bubble: C. Hubbard, M. Van Dyk, BJ Finney, R. Dismukes, K. Palmer

With Pouncey’s injury, he will likely be placed on the “Injured Reserve-Designated for Return” list, which will keep him out at least half the season. This moves Cody Wallace into the starting center position and puts the Steelers in the market to find another center on the free agent market. Additionally, Mike Adams being placed on the PUP list means he can’t practice until Week 6 but he also won’t count against the 53-man roster. Adams’ injury opened a roster spot for Alejandro Villanueva at the “swing tackle” spot. With Pouncey out, the Steelers signed G/C Doug Legursky last week to fill the void at the backup center position. Chris Hubbard was on the team as the 8th lineman last year but he looked bad attempting to play center against Green Bay and his spot as the reserve interior lineman could be challenged.

Defensive Line

Roster Locks (4): C. Heyward, S. McLendon, S. Tuitt, D. McCullers
Should Make the Team (1): C. Thomas
Bubble: LT Walton, M. Conrath, E. Hemer

The question here is if the Steelers will keep 5 or 6 defensive linemen. Traditionally, the team has kept 6 linemen. However, with Clifton Geathers getting injured, it seems uncertain if there is a 6th lineman worthy of a roster spot. If they do decide to keep 6, draft pick LT Walton seems to have the edge. The Steelers may also scour the waiver wire for help along the defensive line.

Outside Linebacker

Roster Locks (4): A. Moats, B. Dupree, J. Jones, J. Harrison
Should Make the Team (0)
Bubble: A. Chickillo, H. Jones, S. Green

Traditionally, the Steelers have only kept 9 linebackers. With the top 4 set in stone as guys that will get helmets on Sundays and rotate within the game, there isn’t much room for anyone else to crack the lineup. That said, if the Steelers break with tradition and keep a 10th linebacker, there are 3 excellent candidates here. Sixth-round pick Anthony Chickillo has looked great aside from wearing sleeves in the Hall of Fame game. Howard Jones was the darling of camp last year and has continued to impress. Shayon Green actually started the Hall of Fame Game and has flashed at times.

Inside Linebacker

Roster Locks (3): L. Timmons, R. Shazier, S. Spence
Should Make the Team (2): V. Williams, T. Garvin
Bubble (1): L.J. Fort

The Steelers have thinned the depth chart at inside linebacker a bit over the last few weeks since Jordan Zumwalt was injured. All five of these guys should make the team. Williams is working through a hamstring injury and Timmons is overcoming a toe injury. Terence Garvin is one of the best special teams players on the team which secures his roster spot. LJ Fort survived the first round of cuts and has shown some ability on special teams but the numbers are clearly against him at this point.

Cornerback

Roster Locks (4): C. Allen, W. Gay, A. Blake, B. Boykin
Should Make the Team (1): D. Grant
Bubble: K. Fogg, BW Webb

Second-round pick Senquez Golson was placed on the IR after having shoulder surgery last week. If the Steelers decide to keep 6 CBs, the decision will come down to Kevin Fogg or BW Webb. Fogg has looked better through the first four games as Webb had an awful game against Jacksonville. Rookie 4th round pick Doran Grant has looked good as a gunner on special teams and shown some flashes of ability in coverage. Grant should make the team as the 5th corner. If the Steelers aren’t comfortable with this group, they could explore options on the free agent market, where they have gone for CB help in the past.

Safety

Roster Locks (3): M. Mitchell, S. Thomas, W. Allen
Should Make the team (1): R. Golden
Bubble: G. Holliman, R. Ventrone, A. Darby, J. Dangerfield

Robert Golden’s spot is solidified by his abilities on Special Teams, where he was the captain last season. Ross Ventrone’s injury opened the door for some other players to contribute at safety. Jordan Dangerfield is a safety that hits like a linebacker and has made splash plays on Special teams. Alden Darby has been running the the second-team defense and looked fairly solid up until the Buffalo game when he got roasted. Gerod Holliman, the 7th round pick out of Louisville, has not done much to impress so far, but his status as a draft pick should make him at least a candidate for the practice squad.

Specialists

Roster Locks (2): G. Warren, J. Scobee
Should Make the Team (0)
Bubble: B. Wing, J. Berry

The Jordan Berry-Brad Wing punting battle is still in full swing. Berry got reps with the first-team specialists against Green Bay and looked great. Wing got first-team reps against Buffalo and looked decent as well, but Berry came on and looked better in the second half. Josh Scobee will make the team as the kicker with Shaun Suisham and Garrett Hartley out for the season.
With this in mind, here is my prediction for how the 53-man roster will shake out:

Offense (23)

QB (3): B. Roethlisberger, M. Vick, L. Jones
RB (3): D. Williams, D. Archer, J. Harris
FB (1): W. Johnson
WR (5): A. Brown, M. Wheaton, D. Heyward-Bey, S. Coates, T. Murphy
TE (3): H. Miller, M. Spaeth, J. James
OT (3): K. Beachum, M. Gilbert, A. Villanueva
OG (3): R. Foster, D. DeCastro, C. Hubbard
C (2): C. Wallace, D. Legursky

Defense (27)

DE (4): C. Heyward, S. Tuitt, C. Thomas, LT Walton
NT (2): S. McLendon, D. McCullers
OLB (5): J. Harrison, A. Moats, J. Jones, B. Dupree, A. Chickillo
ILB (5): L. Timmons, R. Shazier, S. Spence, V. Williams, T. Garvin
CB (5): C. Allen, W. Gay, A. Blake, B. Boykin, D. Grant, K. Fogg
FS (2): M. Mitchell, R. Golden
SS (2): S. Thomas, W. Allen, R. Ventrone

Specialists (3)

K (1): J. Scobee
P (1): J. Berry
LS (1): G. Warren

Suspended (2): L. Bell, M. Bryant

PUP List (1): M. Adams

IR-Designated for Return (1): M. Pouncey

The last 5 players I added to the roster list were Josh Harris, Chris Hubbard, Tyler Murphy, Ross Ventrone and LT Walton. If the Steelers are going to scour the waiver wire and replace players, I would expect them to look for defensive linemen, safeties, running backs and wide receivers. Additionally, I do not think the Steelers will enter the season with just 23 offensive players on the active roster (of course, that number will change when Bell and Bryant’s suspensions end).