NFL training camps can be very telling when it comes to player performances. Over the 2023 offseason, Omar Khan and his crew made their best effort to shore up the Steelers roster and ensure that Pittsburgh will be a competitive team for the upcoming season.
After being on hand at Steelers training camp and diagnosing the performance of players in Pittsburgh's preseason opener, it's easy to see the players who could emerge from the shadows to impress with promising seasons in 2023. At the same time, others have been almost non-existent at times during training camp. Here are five players who seem to have gone missing in recent weeks.
5. Tanner Muse, Linebacker
It was probably naive to think that Tanner Muse would be anything more than a bottom-of-the-roster linebacker who offers special teams ability, but I was intrigued by his skill set when the Steelers signed him during the 2023 offseason. The former Clemson defender was a linebacker/safety hybrid who wowed scouts with a blazing 4.41 speed at the NFL Combine.
Fast forward nearly three years and his career isn't turning out as we had hoped. At 6'2'' and roughly 230 pounds with notable speed and athletic ability, Muse may look the part of a nickel linebacker, but he hasn't proven himself at Steelers training camp.
Muse has failed to make many splash players during camp, and his unspectacular performance carried on to the first preseason game where he earned an overall grade of just 26.7 on 30 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus -- the lowest on the team.
This alone doesn't spell the end for Muse in Pittsburgh, but he needs to emerge from the shadows to finally make an impact at training camp. The Steelers could use a linebacker and special teamer with his athletic traits, but he needs to show that he can be trusted.