Player: DB Ryan Watts
Stock Value: Down
Reasoning: The signing of CB Cameron Sutton will make it that much harder for Ryan Watts to make the 53-man roster. The rookie sixth-round pick is in a crowded defensive back room, perhaps too crowded for him. He will have his chance to earn a roster spot in training camp, but he is facing an uphill battle.
The Steelers could have drafted a cornerback much earlier. They dumped most of their room from the previous season, minus Joey Porter Jr., parting with Patrick Peterson, Levi Wallace, James Pierre, and Chandon Sullivan. While they traded for Donte Jackson, they waited until the sixth round to take Ryan Watts.
And some question if Watts can even stay at cornerback at the NFL level. But assuming that he can, he now has company. In addition to Porter and Jackson, he is competing with Darius Rush and Cory Trice Jr. among others. The signing of Cameron Sutton, a surefire roster lock as long as his off-field issues don’t prevent it, the rookie is going to struggle to find his place.
It is not clear that Watts has a better path to a roster spot at safety, either. There, they have Minkah Fitzpatrick, DeShon Elliott, Damontae Kazee, and Miles Killebrew. Trenton Thompson is another safety who should be very competitive for a roster spot, as well.
If Watts does make the 53-man roster, it will come at the expense of somebody like Trice or Rush. Not necessarily Trice or Rush, but somebody like them, young defensive backs with promise. But Watts is supposed to be a young defensive back with promise himself, so that shouldn’t be a bad thing. If he earns a roster spot, then he deserves to be here.
But what Watts will be doing as a rookie is playing special teams. He already has a special teams background at the college level, which does give him a significant leg up. He seems to understand the trials that await him and the obstacles he will have to navigate in order to earn his place. Surely, he has heard all of the critics. All he has to do is go out there and be his best self. He certainly has a legitimate shot to make the roster. It just got that much harder with the signing of Sutton, though.
As the season progresses, Steelers players’ stocks rise and fall. The nature of the evaluation differs with the time of year, with in-season considerations being more often short-term. Considerations in the offseason often have broader implications, particularly when players lose their jobs or the team signs someone. This time of year is full of transactions, whether minor or major.
A bad game, a new contract, an injury, a promotion—any number of things affect a player’s value. Think of it as a stock on the market, based on speculation. You’ll feel better about a player after a good game or worse after a bad one. Some stock updates are minor, while others are likely to be quite drastic, so bear in mind the degree. I’ll do my best to explain the nature of that in the reasoning section of each column.
