With the 2017 NFL Draft now over and the bulk of the heavy lifting done with regard to the roster building process now out of the way, it is easier to begin to take stock of where the Pittsburgh Steelers stand at certain positions, and what the implications might be of a variety of moves for certain players.
And take stock is what we shall do, as every move has ramifications up and down the roster, so now we will take a look at some specific players and see how the team’s moves during the course of the offseason thus far, and more specifically since the draft, have sent their stock rising, falling, or breaking even.
Player: Roy Philon
Stock Value: Even
This is not defensive tackle Roy Philon’s first rodeo. Actually, it is his fourth, and the third with the Steelers. Pittsburgh originally signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2014, but he failed to make the 53-man roster or stick on the practice squad.
In the interim, the Louisville product has spent some time within the Bears and Lions organizations before he found himself back in Pittsburgh in 2016, signed to a Reserve/Future contract with the team back in February of that year, though his signing came more than a month into their offseason.
Still, he was their only move at his position at that point, but of course they later drafted Javon Hargrave in the third round of that draft. Philon would ultimately suffer an injury during the preseason, however, and he was waived with an injury in the middle of August, so he did not get a chance to showcase himself much.
There must be something that the Steelers like about him, though, because they brought him back once again, for the third time over the course of the past four years. Still, while his presence is notable, we have not exactly heard anything about him that would indicate that he is in a strong position to make some sort of move this year.
Of course, the nature of the defensive tackle position in the NFL is such that there is not a whole lot that you can put on display without putting the pads on, so, as is the case for a lot of young players on this roster, they will be looking forward to getting into Latrobe to get their coaches’ attention.
Philon is undersized for the defensive tackle position with regards to weight, but he has that spark-plug type of style that they almost seem to be looking for. At the worst, he could potentially be viewed as a candidate for the practice squad this year, which frankly would be a nice feather in his cap.
I’m not about to argue that he is going to push Daniel McCullers off the roster, but if the veteran does miss the roster, it’s far more likely Philon makes at least the practice squad, so that is worth noting as well.
