Pittsburgh Steelers 53-man roster prediction: Who makes the final cut?

Linebackers (5): Joe Schobert, Devin Bush, Buddy Johnson, Robert Spillane, Marcus Allen

I think I have all five players right here. However, I will say that we don’t know the extent of Marcus Allen’s injury at this point in time. If his hamstring injury is severe enough, this could force him to land on IR.

As of now, I’m going to assume that he’s the final off-ball linebacker who makes the squad. The Steelers will deploy a healthy dose of Joe Schobert and Devin Bush. In fact, I don’t expect either to leave the field very often, and it’s possible that one of the two could end up flexing out to cover the slot in dime packages (though adding another defensive back could be in the cards).

Behind the starters, Robert Spillane had a bad training camp and preseason, but he’s likely still the first off the bench (especially if needed on potential running downs) and he should be used on special teams. I also have rookie Buddy Johnson as an essential roster lock this year, but will probably play sparingly on defense.

The decision here came down to Allen or Ulysees Gilbert III – the latter wasn’t very impressive this summer. I think Allen has a chance to serve as a dime backer for the Steelers this year and can be used on passing downs if need be in addition to offering special teams value.