5 surprise players who made Steelers 53-man roster in 2020

James Pierre

Pierre joined the Steelers as an undrafted free agent out of Florida Atlantic and was highly sought after when the NFL Draft finished and he was still available. The Steelers were able to convince him to sign the dotted line and he started turning heads in this altered preseason. He came out of college with a very impressive senior year and one that caught the eyes of NFL scouts.  That season included three interceptions, 43 tackles, and four and a half tackles for loss.

Pierre was impressive in camp as he made himself known. He showed the coaches why he deserved to be on the 53-man roster and he must’ve shown a nice ability in special teams.

The lower you are on the depth chart the higher the need for special teams skills you will have to display. The special team coordinator, Danny Smith, and the staff saw something with this athlete and decided he was necessary for this team.

Pierre is a young guy that is raw and has only shown one year of solid production coming out of college. He will need to continue to show coaches why they kept him throughout the season and beyond if he wants to stick around and make a solid career for himself on this Steelers team.