4 biggest fallers from Pittsburgh Steelers offseason program

Steelers aren’t content with Montravius Adams

Montravius Adams has been a relative surprise player for the Steelers. Added during the Covid season, Adams quickly earned an active spot due to a combination of good play and injuries. He flashed early on and did enough to earn an extension in the offseason.

Last season was mostly a disappointment. While Tyson Alualu got the initial nod as the nose tackle, he was quickly phased out due to his own regression. Adams saw an increased workload and was mostly ineffective. The glimpses of good play were gone, and it appears more and more likely that he was just a flash in the pan.

While he hasn’t been directly cut yet, the odds don’t seem to be in his favor. The Steelers likely have their new nose tackle set in second-round draft pick Keeanu Benton. While Benton can play all along the line, his initial home seems to be the inside as he learns the pro game.

That alone isn’t the end of the world for Adams. His salary, while slightly bloated, isn’t unmanageable. If Benton was the only addition, Adams would likely still be the favorite to back him up.

The team also added veterans Breiden Fehoko and Armon Watts to the fold. Neither are locks in their own right to make the team, and Watts may serve as more of a defensive end that can kick inside, but that is some stiff competition for the nose tackle role.

Adams went from de facto starting nose tackle to fighting for a roster spot as a backup. The added cap savings, while slight, from releasing him also aren’t working in his favor. He certainly has seen his stock fall during this off-season program.