With LBs Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander now out for the season, the inside linebacker position is looking pretty slim compared to the room that Pittsburgh had a couple weeks ago. The Steelers had the benefit of running a three-man rotation at off-ball linebacker with Holcomb, Alexander, and Elandon Roberts splitting the reps, each doing his part in different situations with varying skill sets to improve the play at a position that Pittsburgh had struggled with for the last several years. The room had been playing well, but saw Holcomb go down with a serious knee injury and Alexander lost for the season with a reported Achilles injury.
Roberts stepped in as the man wearing the green dot when Alexander when down yesterday against the Green Bay Packers, doing his best to captain a defense that has lost its signal caller in back-to-back weeks. Speaking to Chris Long on the Green light Podcast on Monday, OLB T.J. Watt advocated for Roberts, stating that the team is in good hands with him leading the way at the linebacker position going forward.
“Elandon Roberts is an incredible player,” Watt said on the Green Light Podcast which aired live on the show’s YouTube channel. “I think he’s done it for a long time. Just a guy that’s a steady voice. He’s a guy that feels like he’s a starter from Day One. So even when he came in yesterday, it’s not like you had to minimize the play sheet for him. He’s been in the league for a long time. He knows exactly what he needs to do out there. He’s a thumper. Takes a lot of pride in his work. Yeah, he’s a thumper man and it’s like, ‘Dude, just keep your head out of things and we’ll be all right.'”
Roberts was signed this offseason to play the BUCK role, being mainly a two-down linebacker who provides strong play coming downhill against the run as well as an occasional pass rusher up the middle. Roberts has never been known for being a strong defender in coverage often getting taken advantage of by opposing backs and tight ends he is tasked to run with across the field. Still, Roberts does well accentuating his strengths as a downhill thumper, playing with a physicality and aggressiveness that you want to see from your run-stopping inside linebacker.
“But it’s setting the tone,” Watt said. “It really is. And it’s that old school football, it’s setting the tone. I mean AFC North… a game like this week too, you need a guy like that. And Kwon was a guy that was very energetic, very vocal. And E Rob is more of a quiet guy, but he’s able to deliver messages with how he plays the game.”
Roberts epitomizes what a tone setter is supposed to be for a defense, looking to dish out big hits when he gets the chance to. With four AFC North games up on deck for Pittsburgh as they look to close out the second half of the season on a positive note, Roberts’ presence is going to be more important than ever when facing the likes of the Browns, Ravens, and Bengals’ rushing attacks. Roberts may have to get comfortable having more on his plate as the last heavily experienced linebacker left on Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster, likely having to operate more on passing downs with Alexander and Holcomb on the mend. Still, Watt appears confident in Roberts being able to step up and set the tone going forward, starting with the Browns in a rematch from Week Two’s meeting this coming Sunday in Cleveland.
