After dealing with a late camp injury that limited him throughout the past week and had him running second-team slot corner in Saturday’s preseason finale, Pittsburgh Steelers CB Beanie Bishop was atop the totem pole during Monday’s practice.
Speaking to reporters post-practice via the Trib’s Chris Adamski, Bishop said he ran first-team nickel over Thomas Graham Jr.
As Adamski’s tweet notes, Darius Rush also saw first-team reps today, presumably opposite Donte Jackson, as Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr. were held out with injuries. Porter has a minor injury while Trice injured his groin against the Lions.
But the focus is on the slot, a position group uncertain in starters and depth less than two weeks away from the regular season starting. Bishop ran first-team slot for nearly the first two weeks of training camp before losing ground toward the end. Veteran Grayland Arnold got a shot as the starter before bowing out with a calf injury. Bishop himself dealt with an injury after camp broke and held out of the team’s second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. The Steelers said that was in an effort to have him healthy for the finale but due to a lack of practice reps, Bishop didn’t play against the Lions until the second half.
One day ahead of final cutdowns, there’s still little clarity over who will start or even make the 53. Bishop has seemingly had an inside track on a spot for most of the summer but the injury and his muted impact in-game prevents him from being a lock. Graham has been the only healthy party, practicing all of training camp and appearing in all three preseason games, but he’s not as aggressive against the run and lacks special teams value.
Pittsburgh’s secondary depth is arguably its weakest part of the roster. Backup outside corners behind Porter and Jackson have their own questions. Trice steadily progressed during the summer but wasn’t tested much in coverage and is now dealing with an injury significant enough to keep him out of practice today. Rush has gotten work throughout camp, but his play hasn’t been impressive on defense or special teams. Even safety depth feels a little thin.
It’s logical for the Steelers to be scouring the waiver wire, engaging in trade talks, and keeping an eye on the free agent pool over the next 24-48 hours to bolster their secondary. Because yet again, the Steelers enter another year with slot uncertainty.
