3 sneaky important Steelers storylines to watch during OTAs

If and when Stephon Tuitt will rejoin the Steelers?

After dealing with the tragic loss of his brother last summer, Stephon Tuitt sat out the entire 2021 season and his absence proved to be detrimental to Pittsburgh’s defense. After boasting a top-6 defensive unit every year from 2017 to 2020, the Steelers fell flat last year.

Through their seventeen-game schedule that never included Tuitt once, the Steelers ranked 27th in total yards allowed and were dead last in rushing defense — both in terms of yards allowed and rushing yards per attempt surrendered, according to Team Rankings.

Tuitt was playing like a top-five player on the team before his extended absence, and fans were discouraged to see that he was a no-show for Steelers OTAs. There is some reason for optimism as two of his closest friends on the team, Cameron Heyward and Tyson Alualu, seemed to be very confident that he would return.

Sadly, we don’t know for sure that this will be the case. After missing a full year of football and not suiting up for a game since the end of the 2020 season, I was really hoping Tuitt would be in a state in which he was ready to rejoin his team. If he doesn’t show up to mandatory minicamp in June, I really don’t like his chances of staying with the team.