We are now at a point during the offseason in which we find ourselves looking at training camp just around the corner for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the rest of the league, and a lot has changed for them over the course of the past several months. They have lost a number of players in free agency, through releases, and retirements. But they have also brought in a number of new faces to replace them.
We all know that roster turnover is an ever-present reality for today’s rosters, and it seems that over the course of the past half-decade or so even the Steelers have proven to be as susceptible to the annual shakeup as anybody. With that in mind, we should take the time to get to know some of the new faces with training camp soon to be here.
Oh, hello Terrell Watson, the big, bruising back who hails from the same university of the Nigerian Nightmare, Christian Okoye. That reference bears relevance, since Watson broke many of Okoye’s school records, and, evidently, he has taken to being called ‘Nightmare’ by Mike Tomlin.
The first-year running back garnered some attention for his performance yesterday during Family Day at Heinz Field, so I thought it would be fitting to provide a bit of an introduction for him after he helped conclude practice by scoring three consecutive ‘touchdowns’, including a physical run to close things out.
Listed at 6’1”, with 240 pounds of bulk to go along with it, you get what you see with Watson. The Steelers have been drawn to this frame of running back in recent years while seeking rookie undrafted free agents and Reserve/Future signings, so he fits right in. as Alex Kozora has mentioned, they often wind up on the practice squad.
Which is fair to note, because it would be hard to imagine somebody in Watson’s position making enough headway up the depth chart in order to garner attention for a spot on the 53-man roster. The top man on the totem pole naturally being Le’Veon Bell, rookie James Conner is already an inevitability.
And behind them, there is already a heated competition brewing between Fitzgerald Toussaint and Knile Davis to secure the third running back position. It is rather unlikely that they would keep a fourth running back who lacks versatility.
The Los Angeles native did spend some time on the Eagles’ active roster last season. He closed out their regular-season finale with his only playing time, carrying the ball nine times for 28 yards and scoring a touchdown. He also caught one pass for five yards.
Watson is going to be competing with Trey Williams, whom I intend to discuss tomorrow, as they each try to stake a claim on a spot on the practice squad. Brandon Brown-Dukes was there for a time last year, but seems to have fallen behind at this point.
