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: Carlos Davis
Position: DL
Experience: 2 Years
A 2020 seventh-round draft pick, Carlos Davis flashes enough—in very limited opportunities—as a rookie to get people to start getting excited about him. Two years later, he’s currently not on any team’s 90-man roster, including the Steelers, with whom he spent the 2022 season on the practice squad.
Pittsburgh found itself unusually deep along the defensive line last year, ending up carrying seven linemen into the season, none of whom were Davis nor his twin brother, Khalil, who first came into the organization in 2021 via the practice squad (after first trying and failing to claim him on waivers). Neither twin is currently employed by an NFL franchise.
Carlos Davis was elevated from the practice squad to play in one game last season, in week eight against the Philadelphia Eagles, the game that Larry Ogunjobi missed due to injury. He logged 12 snaps on defense, registering one tackle that happened to be a sack, bringing down Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts for an eight-yard loss.
It was the first sack of his career, and of course thus far the only. After that game, he returned to the practice squad where he spent the remainder of the season, but the Steelers did not retain him on a Reserve/Future deal.
One presumes, given the absence of opportunity that he has held elsewhere, that Pittsburgh did not extend him an offer. Instead, they currently employ Jonathan Marshall and Renell Wren as seemingly preferred depth at his position.
If they need some depth along the defensive line while they’re in training camp, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him back, provided that he isn’t already signed elsewhere. He has been free to sign with anybody since the end of the Steelers’ regular season, though, and hasn’t landed a deal yet.
