The saga of Darnell Savage in Pittsburgh was a weird one. It was announced that the Steelers had signed the former first-round pick early in free agency. However, nothing became official for months, and a deal wasn’t finalized until well after the draft.
Now, just days into training camp, the Steelers have already decided to move on.
It was announced this weekend that the Steelers were signing veteran safety Rayshawn Jenkins to a deal. Shortly afterward, news broke that Savage was being cut to make room.
This much shuffling so early on in the safety room is pretty telling. Clearly, Savage was no longer playing a good enough brand of football.
The Pittsburgh Steelers made a quiet upgrade in their safety room
While Jenkins is also past his prime as an every-down starter, he feels like the more valuable asset for this.
Both ideally fit in as third safeties for a defense. They can sub in for a game here or there if injuries strike, but the goal should be for a player like Savage or Jenkins to be a core member of the defense. I’d say Jenkins is the slightly better defender at this point, but it is negligible.
On the flip side, Jenkins has consistently been a core special teams player. While I wouldn’t say he excels there, he has consistently been used on coverage units.
Even when he was counted on as a starter with the Chargers and the Jaguars, Jenkins was seeing 30 percent of the special teams snaps. Assuming he makes the team, he should be expected to have a role there.
Savage has never developed into much of a special teams player. For one reason or another, it has never suited his game. As a backup safety, that is a tough pill to swallow.
The only potential positive of Savage over Jenkins is his more natural free safety build. Both are interchangeable, though, and as depth, I wouldn’t dwell too much on what position they feel more natural at.
Ultimately, as a one-for-one swap, I think the Steelers got a small upgrade in their defensive back room. His ability to play special teams alone makes him a better reserve than Savage.
Is it a move that ultimately changes much for the outlook of the team? No, but it was a savvy signing for the Steelers as training camp continues to ramp up.
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