Steelers are given mediocre grades for most of their free agent signings

Steelers grade for signing Elandon Roberts

Contract: 2 years, 7 million dollars, 2.335 million dollar signing bonus

Grade: C-

I really want to like the Steelers signing of Elandon Roberts. On paper, the team is getting a viable two-down starter at a fair price. The Steelers have also gotten pretty poor play from their linebackers in recent years, especially against the run. That is something Roberts does well, as he can play downhill and shoot through gaps.

My issue is that Roberts seems like a redundant fit for this defense. The other linebacker added (more on him soon) is a similar player against the run. Add in Mark Robinson flashing a lot as a rookie, and it seems like Roberts doesn’t have a great fit on this defense. Either he is taking snaps away from Robinson or he is an expensive backup.

If the team wanted that dependable run stuffer, they could have brought back Robert Spillane at the same price. What would have been an even better idea is spending up slightly and spending a bit more for some of the linebackers that hit the market. This deal isn’t a huge deal given the relatively little cap space, but I feel like Pittsburgh could have done better.