By Tuesday at 4 PM/EST, the Pittsburgh Steelers initial 53-man roster will be set, already making eight roster deletions. While the front office may tinker with how it looks afterwards, it’ll largely be the group they take into Week One when they host the San Francisco 49ers. In reviewing how the roster looks, Teryl Austin broke down where the team is strong and where they lost a little over the summer’s grind.
“I think we all think our defensive line depth is better this year,” he said via a team-provided transcript. “Really good. I actually kind of like our linebacker core. I think we’re just deeper all around. We know we’re going to miss Corey Trice in terms of providing depth in the secondary. But I think in the front though, I think between the linebackers and the defensive line, we’ve actually got some really good depth.”
The phrase “I actually kind of like our linebacker core” speaks volumes. The EDGE depth is superior to the mess the team has had over the past two seasons, rolling through the likes of Taco Charlton, Derrek Tuszka, Malik Reed, and rookie defensive linemen DeMarvin Leal over that span. For 2023, the team added veteran Markus Golden and rookie Nick Herbig. Both players have had strong summers, especially during the team’s preseason outings. Leal is an option as well as he tries to make a jump in his second season. And the inside linebacker unit looks much improved with Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, and Kwon Alexander all enjoying impressive summer showings. Those three are expected to rotate during the season.
Austin has sung the praises of the team’s defensive line all summer, recently admitting the team is set to make a difficult cut. Pittsburgh legitimately has eight players worthy of a spot on the 53-man roster but at maximum, will only carry seven. The final spot will likely come down to NTs Montravius Adams and Breiden Fehoko along with DEs Isaiahh Loudermilk and Armon Watts. It’s probable only three of those four names will stick. There may be a lack of high-level talent behind Cam Heyward but there is rotational depth so long as the starters stay healthy.
Trice is one of the few sour moments of the Steelers’ summer. He suffered a “significant” knee injury during the team’s first padded practice, a non-contact injury as he came downhill to stop a WR Jordan Byrd jet sweep. Trice was carted off the field and soon placed on injured reserve. Days later, we spotted him at camp on crutches. He’ll look to get back for 2024 but is battling a lengthy injury history, one key reason why he fell to the final round of April’s draft.
Cornerback depth is one of the team’s weaker areas. There’s a solid-enough top three in Levi Wallace, Patrick Peterson, and Joey Porter Jr., but the fourth spot isn’t as strong as what would be ideal. James Pierre has become a quality special teams player but a frustratingly inconsistent cornerback with wild technique that makes him hard to trust. He could still make the roster but his ceiling looks capped. Trice would’ve added an extra element of depth and likely battled Pierre for a spot on the roster.
Overall, Pittsburgh’s defense is expected to be the anchor of the two units. The pass rush looks fierce, the defensive line deeper, the inside linebackers better, and the safeties with enough playmaking to mask elite down-to-down reps. Of course, a strong pass rush does wonders for coverage, and those two elements play off each other well.
