The Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex earlier than they had anticipated, having been ousted from the postseason in the opening round, which unfortunately marks a slight improvement from the past two seasons, during which they did not even qualify for the playoffs altogether. They have now done four seasons without securing a victory beyond regular season play.
Yet again, they find themselves undergoing the exit meeting process earlier than anticipated, which means so are we.
They did manage to go 12-4 during the regular season, and secured their first AFC North title since 2017, posting a new franchise record by opening the season with 11 consecutive wins, but of course it all fell apart after that. Their only victory after that required a 17-point comeback.
While we might not know all the details about what goes on between head coach Mike Tomlin and his players during these exit meetings, we do know how we would conduct those meetings if they were let up to us. So here are the Depot’s exit meetings for the Steelers’ roster following the 2020 season.
Player: Matthew Wright
Position: K
Experience: 1 Year
It’s generally preferred that you don’t find yourself using multiple players at both kicker and punter in a single season, but that’s what the Steelers had to do a year ago. in terms of the punter position, poor play from their replacement punter forced them to revert back to their original long-time punter they had previously released before the season opener.
For kicker, however, it was a matter of Chris Boswell—one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history—dealing with some minor injuries that caused him to need to sit out at times. Enter Matthew Wright, whom the Steelers originally signed as an undrafted free agent rookie in 2019.
He did not make the team, naturally, and went on to play in the XFL. When Boswell was injured this past year, however, he was signed to the practice squad, and then was elevated twice to kick in games in place of their starter. The third time he was elevated, it was as a Covid-19 replacement (though not for Boswell).
He did rather well for himself, too, going 7-for-7 on point after attempts and 4-for-4 on field goals, with a long of 46 over the course of those three games. He went 3-for-3 in the season finale loss against the Cleveland Browns, during which he actually hit two field goals from 46 yards out. In fact, he accounted for their only scoring until the fourth quarter.
While the Steelers are settled at kicker for obvious reasons, I am pleased to report that Wright has landed on his feet, as he signed a futures deal with the Detroit Lions. His competition is veteran Randy Bullock—who has, in the past, also kicked for the Steelers when Boswell was injured.
