3 fringe Steelers players who will make the roster, and 2 who won't

Steelers fringe player that won’t make the roster: DB Tre Norwood

On paper, Tre Norwood should be in a great spot to make this roster and carve out a role on defense. The former seventh-round draft pick has played safety in the past, but he excels as the extra secondary member in dime defense and as a slot defender. With Cameron Sutton now in Detroit, he could make a huge jump as a player this season.

The issue was that last year Norwood became an afterthought in this defense. While he still looked competent in coverage, his tackling became a real issue. While Norwood has never been a great option to wrap up a ball carrier, he was abysmal last year, posting a nearly 18 percent missed tackle rate.

Numbers like that will absolutely keep you off the defense, as Norwood proved to be a liability when asked to bring down a ball carrier. While he did see a healthy amount of snaps on special teams, not being able to tackle well doesn’t bode well for a player that will serve on coverage units. There will be better options out there.

On one hand, Norwood has the chance to cement himself as a starter for this defense in the slot. His tackling needs to make serious improvements though, as he will not be counted on if he plays similarly to how he did last year. Ultimately, if he can’t get his tackling issues resolved, don’t be surprised to see him get cut at the end of training camp.