The Pittsburgh Steelers have worked all offseason to try to improve their roster wherever they could manage it, turning over every stone to look for help. The inside linebacker position in particular has been turned on its head, with only one player from last season’s 53-man roster remaining and five substantial veterans added this offseason via free agency.
That included a Sunday addition of their most experienced veteran now at the position, signing Kwon Alexander, who has over 5,000 defensive snaps under his belt. The Steelers had been in contact with him since May at least, but a couple days into training camp spurred the completion of a deal.
Those who had already been brought in earlier this offseason are not takin the move sitting down, including Cole Holcomb, who was limited for most of the offseason while recovering from foot surgery. “I want to be the every-down backer, so I’ll do I gotta to do”, he told reporters, via audio aired on 93.7 The Fan.
A fifth-year veteran, Holcomb had been a tackling machine for the Washington Commanders over the past two seasons until a foot injury last year ended his tenure with the team prematurely. The Steelers signed him to a three-year, $18 million contract in March.
Prior to his injury, he had been that every-down player, logging 99 percent of the snaps for which he was available over the past two years. He saw 1,021 snaps in 2021 and 446 in just seven games last year, leading up to his injury. He averaged over nine tackles per game during that time.
Even though he only turns 29 on Wednesday, Alexander hasn’t quite been used in that every-down role the past couple years. In fact, he logged fewer than 50 percent of the defensive snaps for the New York Jets in 2022 even though he played in every game, starting 12. He only played more than 66 percent of the snaps in two games.
But he logged 90 percent of the defensive snaps or better in each of his four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to start out his career, and he produced in that capacity with a diverse stat line. He has 590 career tackles with 49 for loss to go along with eight interceptions, 33 passes defensed, 11 forced fumbles, and 12.5 sacks.
One would imagine that Holcomb is still in line to be the every-down backer, especially given the positive reports of his play over the past two days of training camp, notably in his coverage work. But Alexander could challenge the other big veteran addition, Elandon Roberts, for playing time, even the starting job.
Either way, it’s a good problem for the Steelers, who now have three experienced veterans who know how to run a defense. All of them are new to the system, but their familiarity running the show should help to reduce the number of growing pains we’re likely to see in the early parts of the season.
