Expect many interesting internal battles to hit the Pittsburgh Steelers roster in the coming weeks. With training camp about to begin in late July, the club could be looking to make some changes. The only way to improve beyond the mediocre middle that they currently sit in will be to shake up the 53-man roster. A new coaching staff in place should force new trends regarding roster construction.
One area of the roster that could be tough to solve might be at the wide receiver position.
There are clear frontrunners when it comes to who will be the starters and share the bulk of the snaps on offense. Beyond those players is where things could get interesting. Essentially, Pittsburgh will have to choose one wide receiver out of a group of four or five contenders for the 53-man roster this season.
A name who appears safe entering training camp that shouldn't be so secure is Ben Skowronek.
He is a special teams star and close with Aaron Rodgers, which makes him seem like a shoo-in to make the team, but there are no guarantees. His strong special teams' contributions continue to keep him around as a valuable asset, but Skowronek is someone who could be challenged for his job more than some might expect.
Pittsburgh Steelers could consider shocking release of Ben Skowronek during 53-man roster cuts
When it comes down to it, Skowronek is nothing more than a veteran fringe player who is an elite special teams producer. He can play snaps at the wide receiver position when called upon, but no one should expect much from him at his natural position.
Having that element of being effective in the third phase of football will make him a tough player to push off the final roster.
The options behind Skowronek are where things could get interesting. All five of DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Roman Wilson, and Kaden Wetjen seem like locks for the 53-man roster, barring some sort of major change. Normally, the Steelers only keep five or six players at the position, but that could always change with Mike McCarthy leading the team.
If the Steelers choose to keep six wide receivers on the roster, that will intensify Skowronek's battle to make the team. There are four other wide receivers on the current roster who will contend for the final spot with the team, five if you consider Eli Heidenreich as a wide receiver.
The numbers are working against the veteran in this scenario, but he shouldn't be panicking yet.
At the end of the day, Aaron Rodgers will have a massive influence over this team, which points to his good buddy Skowronek sticking around. Unless another receiver proves to be more effective on special teams (while offering more offensive potential), Skowronek will likely make the Steelers roster for the third year in a row.
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