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90 In 30: Steelers 2024 Training Camp Preview Series — Isaiahh Loudermilk, Dean Lowry, Jonathan Marshall

By Dave Bryan

Posted on July 6, 2024 at 7:15 am

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2024 offseason practices concluded in the middle of June. Next up is the team’s annual training camp, which gets underway in the latter part of July at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. Ahead of Steelers training camp, we will preview the team’s offseason roster three players at a time as part of a multi-post series. This Steelers roster preview, which includes outlooks for every player, will be done alphabetically by last name to make it easy to follow. This series figures to exceed 90 players this year as the team can carry 91 players in total during the offseason due to the allowance of one international player designation.

The next set of players we will preview ahead of the Steelers’ 2024 training camp are Isaiahh Loudermilk, Dean Lowry, and Jonathan Marshall.

DE Isaiahh Loudermilk: In 2023, Loudermilk dressed for and played in all but one game for the Steelers. The former fifth-round draft pick out of Wisconsin ended his third NFL season with 16 total tackles, one quarterback hit, and two passes defensed in the less than 200 defensive snaps that he played in 2023. Had veteran DT Cameron Heyward not missed a good portion of the 2023 season due to his injury, Loudermilk likely would have logged a lot less playing time.

While Loudermilk has shown a few bright spots here and there so far in his NFL career, especially against the run, he is still a wildly inconsistent player overall and one who struggles more often than not in pass-rushing situations.

Outlook: With this being Loudermilk’s fourth training camp with the Steelers, he has a lot to prove this summer once practices get underway in Latrobe. He will need to earn a spot on the 53-man roster this summer by beating out several other players, one of which is rookie draft pick DL Logan Lee. If the Steelers wind up keeping just six defensive linemen on their initial 53-man roster, Loudermilk could be in trouble.

All told, the next several weeks could go either way for Loudermilk, who should get plenty of playing time during the team’s three preseason games. Should Loudermilk ultimately fail to survive the final round of roster cuts in September, he might wind up starting the 2024 regular season on the practice squad.

Even if Loudermilk finds himself on the 53-man roster come Week 1, there’s no guarantee he will dress for games, barring injuries. He really needs to make a significant jump this summer.

DL Dean Lowry: The Steelers signed Lowry to a two-year, $5 million contract in early April, and that move came after the Minnesota Vikings released the veteran defensive lineman in the middle of March. Originally selected in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers out of Northwestern, Lowry has registered 266 total tackles, 23 tackles for loss, 34 quarterback hits, 15.5 sacks, one interception, 17 passes defensed, one forced fumble, and five fumble recoveries for his career. He also has one defensive touchdown to date.

In 2023, Lowry played for the Vikings, logging 237 total snaps on defense and 39 more on special teams. He registered just 14 total tackles, one pass defensed, and one fumble recovery in 2023 in the nine games that he played in. A pectoral injury landed Lowry on the Vikings’ Reserve/Injured list for the final six games of the 2023 regular season. He also missed two games in the middle of the 2024 season due to a groin injury as well.

The Steelers had previously brought Lowry in for a 2016 pre-draft visit, so they were familiar with him way before signing him this offseason.

Outlook: The Steelers really needed some experienced depth on their defensive line this offseason, and Lowry certainly fits that bill. He should easily make the 53-man roster later this summer and then go on to dress as a backup defensive lineman once the 2024 regular season gets underway. While Lowry can play up and down the defensive line, the Steelers will likely use him as a defensive end in some base fronts and one of two down defensive linemen in some sub-packages.

Lowry did miss quite a few games in 2023 due to two different injuries, so that is a little bit concerning. Even so, Lowry is still just 30 years old, and he should be fresh after not playing since Week 11 of the 2023 season. Lowry’s last full sack came during the 2021 season, and he only has 15.5 for his career. In short, he’s not a huge sack producer overall. His play against the run has also deteriorated over the course of the last few seasons, so there is some cause for concern there as well.

In closing, Lowry is not a starter-quality player, and thus, he can’t be expected to play a large number of meaningful snaps in 2024 without issues. Whether he sees the 2025 year of his current contract will depend on how he plays in 2024. The Steelers really need Lowry to be dependable in hopefully very limited playing time in 2024.

DT Jonathan Marshall: Originally selected in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Arkansas by the Kansas City Chiefs, Marshall spent the entire 2023 season on the Steelers’ practice squad.

Marshall originally joined the Steelers late in the 2022 season after being signed off the practice squad of the New York Jets. While Marshall did not see action for the Steelers in 2023, he previously played 76 defensive snaps for the Jets during the 2021 season.

Last year, during the preseason, Marshall logged 43 total defensive snaps at defensive tackle. However, he logged just two assisted tackles during that limited preseason playing time. He also logged four special teams snaps last preseason as a member of the kick-blocking unit.

Outlook: While Marshall was able to stick on the Steelers’ practice squad all last season, which in and of itself was an impressive feat, the odds are good that he’ll be battling this summer for an opportunity to start the 2024 regular season on that unit.

The Steelers have quite a deep depth chart regarding the defensive line position, so Marshall’s path to a 53-man roster spot is incredibly daunting. Assuming he stays on the roster through the start of training camp, we should see Marshall play in all three preseason games again this year.

Previous Posts In This Series:

Related Items:2024 Training Camp, Dean Lowry, Isaiahh Loudermilk, Jonathan Marshall

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