On Monday afternoon, the NFL handed down an eight-game suspension for Pittsburgh Steelers CB Cam Sutton after completing an investigation into his domestic violence case from earlier in the offseason. At face value, the Steelers are worse off in their secondary without him. There is really no way to argue that with the experience that he brings compared to the rest of the slot corner options.
If there is one silver lining, however, it is that Sutton’s suspension conveniently lines up with the “easier” part of the Steelers’ 2024 schedule.
“If they can get by the first eight games without him, and let’s be honest, the easy part of the schedule is early,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette insider Ray Fittipaldo said on Monday via 93.7 The Fan. “If you can get him for the vet minimum for the final nine games when the schedule gets more difficult, that’s probably the best-case scenario.”
The Steelers will have Sutton for all six of the AFC North divisional matchups, as well as against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. He won’t have to hop right into that gauntlet, either. Returning after the Week 8 game against the New York Giants, he will have the bye week to acclimate himself to the team. Then, they will play one of the easier matchups on the schedule against the Washington Commanders before entering the eight-week gauntlet to end the season.
That is the only real positive to take from this lengthy suspension. The other way to view it is he will be missing for the must-win games at the beginning of the schedule. The Steelers can’t afford to enter the final eight weeks with a deficit on their win-loss record. While the first half is easier than the back half, there are still plenty of competitive teams that Cam Sutton will not be able to play against.
He will miss time against the Atlanta Falcons with Kirk Cousins, the new-look Los Angeles Chargers with Jim Harbaugh and Justin Herbert, Dak Prescott and the high-powered Dallas Cowboys offense, and Aaron Rodgers with the New York Jets. God forbid that either Joey Porter Jr. or Donte Jackson gets hurt during that stretch. The Steelers’ secondary could be in big trouble.
