As the days continue to tick away before the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2015 training camp opens in Latrobe at the end of the month, we continue to preview some of the major storylines to look out for as the weeks progress.
One of the more exciting aspects of training camp is always keeping an eye on the roster battles, and the Steelers appear to have a deeper 90-man roster than has been the case in recent years. As a result, there are several spots in particular at which the coaching staff figures to have a difficult decision to make when the roster cuts must be made.
I wrote about the interior offensive lineman several days ago and today, we’ll swing back and get to the offensive tackles.
The starters are in no competition. Kelvin Beachum and Marcus Gilbert’s jobs are secure and for the point of this article, aren’t worth mentioning any further.
Steelers fans would love to see Alejandro Villanueva take over the top backup spot away from Mike Adams, and with good reason, but the optimistic fervor is a bit much. It’s not impossible to happen but there’s been so much praise heaped on the 6’9 tackle that living up to those expectations will be tough. We’re a ways away from having a legitmate discussion about Villanueva’s chances simply because we know so little.
But truthfully, he’s likely the only person with a chance to push Adams. The teams other two tackles Mitchell Van Dyk are UDFA Kevin Whimpey Whimpey will probably play tackle but his college tape suggested someone more suited at guard. Van Dyk has good size at 6’7 330 and nothing is impossible in camp, why count out a guy you haven’t seen, but it’s still difficult to envision anything more than a practice squad spot.
For those two, they better root for Villanueva making the 53, likely ensuring the team keeps one of them on the practice squad.
