The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: How much playing time will ILB Mark Robinson see moving forward?
As of this writing, the Steelers have a whopping three inside linebackers on their current 53-man roster. And there is currently no room to add another, since in conjunction with moving Cole Holcomb to the Reserve/Injured List, the team also activated RB Anthony McFarland Jr. from the Reserve/Injured List to the 53-man roster.
Of course, given McFarland’s return, we can reasonably assume that RB Godwin Igwebuike is likely going to be released. The Steelers do have a couple of options for players who could be promoted from the practice squad at inside linebacker, perhaps most notably Mychal Walker, who is cousins with former Jaguars RB Maurice Jones-Drew, in case you wanted to know.
As Elandon Roberts or Kwon Alexander would be quick to tell you, the Steelers had been operating with three starting inside linebackers throughout the season—even if only two of them were on the field at the same time.
Holcomb was the closest to an every-down player, so there will be plenty of snaps that need to be filled. I would imagine that Alexander and Roberts will not make up 100 percent of the snaps Holcomb will miss. Surely some other sub-packages with extra defensive backs will compensate to some degree.
But there is the question of Mark Robinson, the second-year linebacker. Although many feel his skill set too closely overlaps with Roberts, there is the possibility of his growing into a more regular role within the defense.
He has played all of four defensive snaps so far, all of them coming back in Week Three against the Las Vegas Raiders. His teammates have praised him for his dedication and his preparation even though he has had little opportunity to contribute defensively. Down Holcomb now, the door is open for him to play, but how wide?
