As NFL offenses become increasingly spread out, schemes on both sides of the ball are adapting; it’s an ongoing chess match. Front offices and coaches must find new kinds of players to accommodate these changing styles, and the new positional requirements have long-term effects on how they build rosters, manage the salary cap, and evaluate players in the draft.
Count the Pittsburgh Steelers as one team that seems to be leaning into a positionless football style. Early in training camp, the Steelers have been moving guys into different positions to get some up-close looks at them, creating versatility overall while searching for advantages within matchups as the game turns to more of a matchup-based one.
Center Kendrick Green has received reps as a fullback/H-back. Running back Anthony McFarland Jr. has seen some reps as a slot wide receiver and has continued to get looks in Pony sets with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. Defensive lineman Isaiahh Loudermilk has gotten some reps in as a true standup 3-4 outside linebacker. Cornerback Patrick Peterson has seen real snaps at safety.
“Theme of camp is versatility. Anthony McFarland Jr., the whole secondary, Isaiahh Loudermilk playing legitimate left outside linebacker, Kendrick Green at fullback/tight end. Guys maximizing their versatility as the Steelers toy around with stuff this summer,” Steelers Depot’s own Alex Kozora wrote in his Day Nine training camp diary from Saint Vincent College Saturday.
Heck, even tight end Connor Heyward is getting reps as a true running back, harkening back to his days at Michigan State.
On the surface some of the reps for guys like Green at fullback/H-back, Loudermilk at outside linebacker and Heyward as a true running back might seem silly, but the game continues to change across the NFL. The Steelers are trying to toy around with things, figure out what the depth looks like and search for ways to take advantage of defenses and offenses in certain situations and packages.
It helps that some of the guys receiving reps at new positions look good doing it.
Green has been the buzz of training camp the last few days, laying some thunderous blocks on the move on Friday night and Saturday afternoon. He was also good on the move as a pulling lineman, so it makes sense that he’s taken to the fullback/H-back role like a fish to water. He’s even shown some surprisingly good hands when called upon to catch the football. Who know? Maybe Green becomes the Steelers’ version of Patrick Ricard.
Heyward could be seen as an emergency running back for the Steelers since he played the position just a few years ago at Michigan State. While he’s a bit bigger than he was at Michigan State, that ability is still there, especially in short-yardage situations. If the Steelers really want to try giving Heyward a look in the backfield at times, it wouldn’t feel gimmicky overall.
Loudermilk is the curious one. Throughout his career he’s been a hand-in-the-dirt guy, one who bulked up to near 300 pounds to be able to handle the rigors of the 3-4 defensive end position. While he seems like he’s slimmed down just a bit, having him stand up to try and provide some reps at outside linebacker is intriguing.
He doesn’t have much juice to his game as a pass rusher, but he’s always been a solid run defender. That feels like a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency situation at outside linebacker for the Steelers, but it’s certainly worth monitoring moving forward with Loudermilk standing up defensively.
With the NFL game changing as quickly as it has in recent years and the game shifting more towards a matchup-based style, it’s smart to toy around with some looks on both sides of the football. That is especially true with some back-end-of-the-roster guys in hopes of unlocking some of that versatility, plugging some holes on the roster overall from a depth standpoint.
Who knows if these looks the Steelers are giving in training camp will make their way into preseason action or the regular season. It does show the Steelers are being open and willing to adapt, which is a great development for the franchise aiming to get back to not only the playoffs but make it back to the status of contenders once again.
