The Pittsburgh Steelers officially announced the signing of DB Grayland Arnold on the same day that they signed Cameron Sutton. The latter move obviously overshadowed the former, for numerous reasons, and anybody reading an article about the Steelers’ relationship with Grayland Arnold almost surely already knows those reasons.
But Arnold revealed an interesting little fact after signing with the Steelers. According to Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Arnold was very nearly a Steeler seven months ago. That makes him the second defensive back who was “nearly a Steeler” last year who now is. They attempted to trade for Donte Jackson at the deadline in 2023, only to complete a trade in March. Adamski writes:
After his first organized team activities session with the Steelers on Wednesday, Arnold said he had verbally agreed to join the Steelers while he was briefly on the market during November of last season but the Texans hurriedly worked to retain him to assist with their secondary depth.
A former college free agent, Arnold began his NFL career in 2020 with the Philadelphia Eagles. As Adamski points out, that means he has ties to Steelers assistant general manager Andy Weidl, who has likely factored into bringing in a number of former Eagles. They also added WR Quez Watkins this offseason.
But Arnold has spent the bulk of his NFL career with the aforementioned Houston Texans, since 2021. He has spent much of that time bouncing on and off the practice squad or on the Reserve/Injured List, though. Of his career 228 defensive snaps, he played 143 of them just last season.
And the reality is much of that playing time occurred due to injury. Amazingly, the Texans had just one defender play at least 80 percent of their snaps last year: CB Steven Nelson. They dealt with a lot of injuries in the secondary, playing a role in early playing time for Arnold.
Arnold himself then suffered an injury and spent a stretch on the Reserve/Injured List. On November 4, they waived him, only to re-sign him days later. Evidently, the Steelers agreed in principle to sign him during that brief window. But the Texans pushed to retain him and did so successfully. He landed on the Reserve/Injured List a week and a half after that.
But now he is in Pittsburgh and ready to compete for a roster spot and a role. “I am here for whatever coach might need me to do – wherever,”, Arnold told Adamski. He most clearly profiles as a slot defender, but he can also play elsewhere in the secondary. The Steelers are likely viewing him as a slot option.
Of course, if he wants to make the team, he needs to befriend special teams coordinator Danny Smith. Arnold has logged over 400 snaps on special teams during his career, including nearly 300 over the past two seasons.
But he is in a crowded defensive back room. At cornerback you have Joey Porter Jr., Donte Jackson, Sutton, Cory Trice Jr., Darius Rush, Josiah Scott, and Beanie Bishop Jr., among others. You also have a host of safeties in Minkah Fitzpatrick, DeShon Elliott, Damontae Kazee, Miles Killebrew, and Trenton Thompson. It’s hard to see where there’s room for Arnold, but where there’s a will, there’s a way. It doesn’t hurt that the Steelers already wanted him last year.
