3 reasons Robert Spillane could be a surprise cut by the Steelers in 2021

Robert Spillane hasn’t played well at all this offseason. Here’s why he could be a surprise cut by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers called upon Robert Spillane in 2020, and he delivered… Well, at least as much as they could have expected him to. Filling in for the injured Devin Bush, Spillane was solid in first few performances, but things turned south as the season pressed on.

Spillane eventually found himself on IR for the final four games of the 2020 season before returning to play against the Cleveland Browns in the playoffs – a game in which Spillane was routinely picked on through the air. Since then, things have gotten even worse for the veteran linebacker.

Seeing how he had struggled all summer, the Steelers traded for former Pro Bowl linebacker Joe Schobert in August, and Spillane will now take a backseat. Though he still offers special teams value, the fact that he’s played so poorly at training camp and during the preseason this year leaves me questioning if he’s even worth a roster spot. Here are three reasons why he could be a surprise cut in 2021:

Joe Schobert will rarely leave the field

The Steelers didn’t trade for a linebacker with a big contract to have him act as part of a rotation this year. While he hasn’t been quite the same player on the Jaguars as he was with the Browns, Schobert should be a massive upgrade over Spillane this season, and he will start from the gate.

In addition, it’s already been reported that Schobert will wear the ‘green dot’ and be on the field in dime packages this year. The fact that the Steelers are planning on playing Schobert and Devin Bush so much this season means that Spillane would just be competing for a reserve role in the event of an injury.