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90 In 30: Steelers 2024 Training Camp Preview Series — Mark Robinson, Darius Rush, Josiah Scott

By Dave Bryan

Posted on July 13, 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 Mark Robinson, Darius Rush, and Josiah Scott.

ILB Mark Robinson: The Steelers selected Robinson in the seventh-round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Mississippi and since then he has been on the team’s 53-man roster. Even so, Robinson has only managed to log 217 total defensive snaps through his first two NFL seasons. Most of those snaps came last season and mainly out of necessity due to all of the injuries the Steelers had at the inside linebacker position. Robinson has also logged 336 total special teams snaps since he was drafted. Most of those came last season as well.

For 2023, and including the Steelers’ one playoff game, Robinson registered 30 total tackles, one for loss, one sack, one quarterback hit, and one forced fumble. He also had five total special teams tackles in 2023. Pro Football Focus gave Robinson a defensive grade of 51.1 last season and that was greatly impacted by his 33.8 coverage grade. Robinson allowed seven receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown last season.

Outlook: If not for the several injuries that the Steelers had at the inside linebacker position in 2023, one must wonder how many snaps Robinson would have played on defense. He was buried on the depth chart behind Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, Kwon Alexander, and even Mykal Walker once he joined the 53-man roster. All of that said, Robinson was a primary special teams player in 2023 and that does carry some weight with him.

The Steelers did sign ILB Patrick Queen during the offseason, and he’s expected to be an every-down player. Additionally, Roberts and Holcomb, if he is healthy, are both expected to have defensive roles in 2024. The Steelers selected ILB Payton Wilson in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft and he will be on the 53-man roster as well. That’s four inside linebackers who are expected to be on the 53-man roster. If that’s indeed what happens, Robinson would likely need to make the roster as a fifth and a core special teams player.

All told, Robinson probably isn’t a lock to make the 53-man roster this summer. While Robinson is a good downhill player, the college running back-turned-inside linebacker still has some development ahead of him on the defensive side football. We will hopefully see that during the preseason. Should Robinson ultimately make the 53-man roster, it’s hard to imagine him seeing a lot of playing time on defense during the regular season barring several injuries like last season.

CB Darius Rush: The Indianapolis Colts selected Rush in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of South Carolina. After Rush failed to make the Colts’ 53-man roster to begin the 2023 regular season, he was signed to the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad. Rush remained on the Chiefs’ practice squad last season until the middle of October when the Steelers signed him to their 53-man roster.

After arriving in Pittsburgh, Rush dressed for and played in three regular-season games. He logged just 39 total defensive snaps in those three contests with 20 more coming on special teams. Thirty of those defensive snaps came in the game against the Tennessee Titans. All told, Rush registered just three total tackles in his limited playing time with one pass defensed. He was mainly used as a sub-package player on defense, lining up at various positions in the process.

Outlook: With the Steelers expected to have Joey Porter Jr. and Donte Jackson as their two starting cornerbacks in 2023, Rush figures to be one of several players on the offseason roster who will battle for backup spots behind the two. Rush is best suited to play outside due to his length so it’s hard to imagine he will figure into the slot-position battle.

Rush struggled last year during the preseason with the Colts in limited playing time. And while he did play a limited number of snaps with the Steelers last year during the regular season, Rush allowed three receptions for 37 yards in coverage and on four total targets. Rush also failed to get himself noticed in his limited special teams snaps last season.

This year during training camp, Rush will have his work cut out when it comes to making the 53-man roster. Improving his play on special teams, and specifically as a gunner and jammer on the punt units, would certainly help his overall cause.

Rush figures to get a lot of playing time during this year’s preseason games. If that’s the case, his performance on defense and special teams will need to be watched closely. On the surface, and ahead of training camp getting underway, it does feel like Rush is a little more inside the roster bubble than outside of it. Even so, he probably shouldn’t be considered a lock as he we sit here in the middle of July.

CB Josiah Scott: Selected in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars out of Michigan State, Scott appeared in six games for them as a rookie, finishing the year with 11 tackles. He was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in May 2021, where he spent two seasons with the team, playing a mix of defense and special teams.

After failing to make the Eagles’ 53-man roster out of the preseason in 2023, Scott was signed to the Steelers’ practice squad. However, an unspecified injury landed Scott on the Steelers’ practice squad Reserve/Injured list in the middle of September. The Eagles signed Scott to their 53-man roster in the middle of October. After roughly a month and a half, Scott was released by the Eagles and then signed to their practice squad.

Scott played in four games for the Eagles in 2023 and he registered two total tackles in 17 defensive snaps and 43 others on special teams. Most of those defensive snaps with the Eagles in 2023 came at slot cornerback, a position he has mainly played since entering the NFL.

For his NFL career, Scott has registered 54 total tackles, four for loss, two interceptions, one sack, eight passes defensed, and a quarterback hit. The Steelers signed Scott to a Reserve/Future contract in January, and he has been with the team all offseason.

Outlook: With veteran CB Cameron Sutton suspended for the first eight games of the 2024 regular season, Scott will be one of a few cornerbacks on the roster who will compete in training camp to be the team’s primary nickel option. Reportedly, Scott was running as the first-team nickel throughout the early portion of the spring and before Sutton was signed in early June. Because of that it will be interesting to see if Scott is the frontrunner for the nickel cornerback job once training camp gets underway.

Scott has played 575 defensive regular season snaps in the NFL with 370 more coming on special teams. In short, he does have experience. Additionally, the Steelers made sure to bring back Scott this offseason after losing him to the Eagles last fall. They obviously like him.

All told, Scott is a player on the Steelers’ offseason roster who probably hasn’t been talked about enough since he returned in January. With Sutton suspended for the first half of the 2024 regular season, and with the other legitimate nickel cornerback options under contract being very inexperienced, Scott could very well make the 53-man roster as the primary nickel player.

Once training camp gets underway, Scott will certainly be a player to pay close attention to. The same goes for him during the preseason games as well. Don’t sleep on him.

Previous Posts In This Series:

Related Items:2024 Training Camp, Darius Rush, Josiah Scott, Mark Robinson

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