4 biggest fallers from Pittsburgh Steelers offseason program

Steelers don’t think Mark Robinson is ready

The Steelers overhauled their linebacker room this offseason. Myles Jack and Devin Bush both were disappointments for this defense, and the room as a whole failed to provide much splash. Now, the only returning member to this group is Mark Robinson, a seventh-round pick from a year ago that flashed some talent at times.

Pittsburgh didn’t stand idly by with this group this offseason though. They were quick to add veteran Cole Holcomb on a three-year deal, and he figures to be the team’s primary linebacker this year. They also signed Elandon Roberts, whose style of play is similar to Robinson’s.

This wasn’t a real blow to Robinson, as everyone expected some new faces in this room. Robinson also wasn’t in a position to be handed the starting role either. It seemed like a fair fight between him and Roberts as to who would be the other starter for this defense.

Then Teryl Austin came out and said that Robinson was still a year away from starting. With the room as it was, those comments weren’t great. Equally so though, it could have been seen as a way to push Robinson and add some fuel to his fire before training camp began.

Then the team went out and signed Nick Kwiatkowski. While his deal isn’t for much, he adds another experienced name that could start if need be and can also play special teams. He seems like the favorite to be the third linebacker off the bench, which further damages Robinson’s chances of contributing this season.

No, Robinson is still a safe name on the roster, but his odds of making a second-year jump seem slim. Despite being the only returning linebacker on this roster, he seems buried already, and the team seems to think he needs some more time before he can play. Despite showing nothing but promise, Robinson seems poised to slip this season.