For the most part, several fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers don’t know much about backup offensive lineman Dylan Cook now that the team has wrapped up their 2023 preseason slate. However, less a week from now, Cook might be very well-known to the fanbase if he winds up making the team’s Week One 53-man roster, which is very plausible at this point.
Cook, who signed with the Steelers back in May, just wrapped up a nice preseason as a member of the Steelers as part of him playing 101 total snaps on offense and 15 others on special teams. A 2022 undrafted free agent out of Montana, Cook played right tackle, left tackle, and left guard for the Steelers during the preseason on his way to registering a Pro Football Focus grade of 66.2.
With the preseason now finished and final roster cuts coming on Tuesday, Cook very well could sneak onto the Steelers 53-man roster and especially if the team decides to move on from guard Kevin Dotson. In fact, and while less probable, even if Dotson winds up being retained, the Steelers could decide to keep Cook as a ninth offensive linemen in lieu of rookie draft pick Spencer Anderson.
Cook, who began his college career as a quarterback for Montana State Northern before switching to offensive line and transferring to Montana in 2018 after sitting out a season, measured in at his 2022 Pro Day at 6064, 308 pounds with 33 1/2-inch arms. He reportedly ran his Pro Day 40-yard dash in 5.09-seconds and registered a 31-inch vertical jump to go along with 20 reps on the bench.
Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022, Cook spent most of his rookie season on their practice squad. He was re-signed by the Buccaneers to a Reserve/Future contract in January but was waived on May 15 following the team’s rookie minicamp weekend. A few days later, Cook was a member of the Steelers.
In early July, our very own Alex Kozora named Cook as a sleeper player to watch well ahead of the team’s training camp getting underway. Once training camp got underway, it became evident that Cook would be in play for a lot of preseason playing time and at multiple positions along the offensive line, which obviously came to fruition during the team’s three exhibition contests.
We’ll now wait and see what the next few days hold for Cook. While he is in no way guaranteed to make the 53-man roster, it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise if he does. In fact, if Cook does wind up being waived by the Steelers by Tuesday evening, he just might not make it through waivers as there could be a team or two interested in claiming him for extended and versatile offensive line depth. Should, however, Cook clear waivers, he certainly should be a prime practice squad candidate for the Steelers.
