Now that the 2021 offseason has begun, following yet another year of disappointment, a fourth consecutive season with no postseason victories, it’s time to take stock of where the Pittsburgh Steelers stand. Specifically where Steelers players stand individually based on what we are seeing over the course of the offseason as it plays out. We will also be reviewing players based on their previous season and their prospects for the future.
A stock evaluation can take a couple of different approaches and I’ll try to make clear my reasonings. In some cases it will be based on more long-term trends. In other instances it will be a direct response to something that just happened. So we can see a player more than once over the course of the season as we move forward.
Player: OLB Cassius Marsh
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: After the Steelers waited to address the outside linebacker position until the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, veteran Cassius Marsh has reportedly had a good showing for the team during spring workouts.
Whether or not it’s good for the team, it’s certainly good for Cassius Marsh that he is getting plenty of work this spring. With T.J. Watt not in attendance for OTAs, the veteran got a great deal of first-team ‘reps’ with whatever drills they might have run.
Piecing together tidbits of information here and there from various beat writers, my impression is that he did well during that time as a pass-rusher, particularly giving rookie fourth-round pick Dan Moore Jr. some fits with his speed.
A former fourth-round pick, Marsh has long been stronger in his pass rush than in other aspects of his game. He did manage to record 5.5 sacks in his lone season in which he played at least 500 defensive snaps.
Originally signed off of the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad in the late stages of the 2020 season, he only played one regular season game with the Steelers last year. Marsh logged a total of 11 defensive snaps and 13 special teams snaps, but did manage two tackles.
After Alex Highsmith was injured in the postseason loss to the Browns, it was Marsh, rather than Ola Adeniyi or Jayrone Elliott, who stepped in to log the bulk of the remaining snaps. He clearly positioned himself from that point forward as the team’s third rusher.
Barring the addition of an outside free agent, with Quincy Roche and a small handful of futures-type players, he really doesn’t have any obstacles in front of him that would prevent him from picking up where he left off.
There was a report that the Steelers were interested in Ryan Kerrigan when he was available this offseason as a free agent.
