The Pittsburgh Steelers are most of the way through the first part of the offseason leading to the draft. Before we get there, we’re going to take stock of how the roster has evolved over the past several weeks. Position by position, we’ll break down who’s coming and going and what’s next, for those rookies and those already here.
Position: Nose Tackle
Total Positional Figure: 4
Offseason Additions: 0
Offseason Deletions: 0
Players Retained:
Keeanu Benton: Last year’s second-round draft pick, Keeanu Benton showed a lot of promise as a rookie. Now, the mission is turning that promise and potential into production. For example, he showed a lot of polish winning off the line of scrimmage, but he managed just one sack. He has the potential to be a genuinely dominant talent in the middle of this defense, sooner rather than later. But he has to go out there and prove it first, rather than showing flashes of who he could be.
Montravius Adams: The Steelers obviously like Montravius Adams a decent bit, as they re-signed him to a two-year, $5 million contract. Now, $2.5 million per season isn’t exactly breaking the bank. But it’s a pretty solid payday for a backup nose tackle. They can afford that with a starter on a rookie deal, though.
Breiden Fehoko: Fehoko became a minor fan favorite because he seems to fit the blue-collar Steelers mentality. The problem is he didn’t actually make the team. He eventually spent time on the 53-man roster due to injury, but he never played. It’s hard to say his chances of making the 53-man roster are better this year behind Benton and Adams.
Jonathan Marshall: Marshall has been around for a couple years on the practice squad now. A 2021 sixth-round pick by the Jets, he has played all of 76 career snaps, all back during his rookie season. At this point, I think the practice squad is his ceiling.
Players Added: N/A
Players Deleted: N/A
Notes And Draft Outlook:
Between Keeanu Benton and Montravius Adams, I don’t know that I see the Steelers investing in a true nose tackle in the draft. They may well draft a defensive lineman, but he had better be versatile if he’s heavy. Benton and Adams can both play in the nickel, but at least Adams isn’t really end-capable. I think you could get Benton on the end if you needed to, but that’s a different topic.
I could see the Steelers added a college free agent or two here, though. As far as veterans go, they have their Breden Fehoko-type player in Fehoko himself. And they have their practice squad-level guy in Jonathan Marshall. Rearranging the deck chairs doesn’t change the quality of the room. But Benton can be a very good starter, and Adams is a solid backup.
