The Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex earlier than they had anticipated, having been ousted before they even reached the postseason, which unfortunately marks the sixth consecutive season in which they failed to win a postseason game—tying their longest drought of the Super Bowl era. Yet again, they find themselves undergoing the exit meeting process earlier than anticipated, which means so are we.
The Steelers did arguably perform at or above expectations this year by going 9-8 and nearly making the postseason at all, a reflection of just how much talent they lost during the offseason, from Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Haden to most of their wide receiver room, not to mention Stephon Tuitt’s decision to retire.
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 2022 season.
Player: Isaiahh Loudermilk
Position: DL
Experience: 2 Years
After a rookie season that showed a modest amount of promise, Isaiahh Loudermilk was largely silent in year two. It started with an injury in training camp that helped to keep him on the sidelines in the early portions of the season and carved out a very clear path for rookie DeMarvin Leal to jump him on the depth chart.
It’s hard to see that changing any time soon, unless the Steelers decide that Leal’s position would be better left outside of the realm of the traditional 3-4 end. Yet there will still be a limited amount of roster spots to go around and helmets on Sundays.
We still don’t know how the Steelers are going to address the defensive line depth, but we can assume that they’re not finished with just re-signing Larry Ogunjobi. They will have to replace at least one of Tyson Alualu, who is likely to retire, and Chris Wormley, who is recovering from a torn ACL.
But the fact that they were heavy at the position leaves them with some wiggle room. They currently have Cameron Heyward, Ogunjobi, Montravius Adams, Leal, and Loudermilk. They will have to add another interior body, possibly even a starter over Adams, so that would bring the number to six. And if they add one more, it could threaten Loudermilk’s spot.
Pittsburgh has been keeping its eyes on the defensive line in this class. The team is sure to come away with at least one, and two certainly is very much in the realm of possibility, even if one of them is a late-round pick. They frequently use a sixth- or seventh-rounder to take one, and some pan out better than others.
