Since the draft concluded, this front office of the Steelers has continued their busy offseason. The draft saw this team get a chunk of upgrades across their roster, and the team should be better off because of it. The final roster is far from being set, but this club has not been afraid to add quality players to compete and battle to make the team.
Omar Khan has branded his thumbprint on this roster as it looks completely different from last season’s installment. There is a revamp in the trenches and different weapons on offense. Getting younger and better at those spots should prove to be a good number of decisions. Free agency and rumors surrounding the club are in full effect as they try and finish this 90-man roster construction before the pre-season process begins.
Pittsburgh added a depth defensive lineman to their roster via claim
It was announced in recent days that Renell Wren would be sidelined for the entire 2023 season due to injury. He spent last season on the practice squad and would have competed for a depth role if he was able to improve form last year. That will have to wait until at least next season after he sustained this injury, which is unfortunate for this time of year.
One man's misfortune brings a new opportunity for another as the Steelers claimed Manny Jones from the Arizona Cardinals. He is a former undrafted free agent coming out of Colorado State in 2022. Jones spent all of last year with the Cardinals and should be able to fight for a practice squad spot with the black and gold.
This defensive line should have a lot of players that compete to make this club. It is likely that the final spots will come down to some mixture of Arman Watts, Breiden Fehoko, Montravius Adams, and Jones. This is a deep group that should only sharpen each other's skills and abilities on the football field. Jones has an uphill battle to make this roster.
A pair of XFL stand outs recently signed with the Steelers
A successful season just wrapped up for the XFL, which is a hard thing to accomplish for some of these new leagues. This is not the first installment of this league, but it is one of the most successful runs it has seen since its inception. One of the biggest advancements has been the number of talents for the XFL that have signed onto NFL rosters for the pre-season grind.
Pittsburgh was not opposed to dipping their toes into that free agency pool either as they inked two players to deals. Luq Barcoo was one of the notable names that the Steelers signed as he should prove to be a quality cornerback to battle for a roster spot in an already crowded position group. Barcoo was the best shutdown corner in the XFL this past season for the San Antonio Brahmas.
Turning to the offensive side of the ball this time and the black and gold saw a big offensive weapon out there available. It was rumored that the Steelers had initially invited Hakeem Butler to their rookie minicamp, but that fell through. Many thought that he would not be joining the Steelers after all, but that would turn out to not be the case.
Butler would sign with the Steelers a handful of days later and will challenge for a roster spot of his own. He is a big target and a former fourth-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals back in the 2019 NFL draft. Things did not work out for him last time, but he took advantage of his shot in the XFL. He totaled a hair under 600 receiving yards and had an eye-popping eight receiving touchdowns.
An old friend comes back to be the black and gold's third stringer
For those that might have missed it somehow, Mason Rudolph is back with the Steelers for another season. He just re-signed with the club after looking at other outside options in free agency. It was a long process for him that seemed to have little to no options available for his services. Pittsburgh should be happy with him being their third-string quarterback this season.
A team could do much worse than Rudolph as their second option, let alone their third choice. He comes back to the team with an understanding that he will be the third guy, which is unlike last year. He was told that he would get a real shot at being the number one guy to start the year, but the writing was on the wall for the opposite to happen.
He will be the third quarterback for this group, but that is a big upgrade over the choices the team had a couple of days ago. Rudolph is a better signal caller than either Tanner Morgan or Bryce Perkins, who they tried out at rookie minicamp. The newly re-signed quarterback has a lot more experience in this league and should boost that position group.
Bringing back the same quarterback room as last year is somewhat shocking with how the season ended. Kenny Pickett is the guy moving forward, but Mitch Trubisky is somewhat shocking to see come back. He mentioned some issues he had with his role after the 2022 campaign ended. Rudolph was outspoken about his issues as a third guy, but Pittsburgh is a good place to be.
Look out because rumors are swirling on the free agency front
Even though we are past the prime of free agency, that does not leave it off the table for NFL clubs to add through that method of talent acquisition. Fans love when players are fun on social media and tease potential changes in their employment across the league. That excitement gets even more ramped up when the Steelers are involved.
Khan is not afraid of being bold, and there are some issues on this roster that could be better. One position that could need an upgrade is the outside linebacker position, better known as the edge rusher position. Nick Herbig was a nice value in the fourth round of the draft, but he still needs time to add to his frame before he can be totally relied upon.
There could be some help on the way behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. Kyle Van Noy is a long-time NFL player that is coming off a contract with the LA Chargers. He is past his prime and his best days of play are behind him. He does have a lot of starting experience and would be a nice addition to round out the outside linebacker group.
Adding fuel to this fire was when Van Noy tweeted the eyes emoji and tagged Fehoko in the post. Those two were teammates with the Chargers last year and it has many speculating that he could sign with the black and gold at any moment. He would be a nice veteran presence to add to this roster at this juncture of the offseason.
The Steelers wanted to sign a linebacker but its been quiet since then
Welcome back to the rumor mill as Pittsburgh seems to be heavily involved in that department recently. That continued beyond just the Van Noy conjecture as Kwon Alexander was reported to be visiting the Steelers facility a couple of days ago. Normally, when things go silent after a visit, that normally does not lead to a contract.
What this visitation of Alexander does show is that the Black and Gold are not comfortable with their current players. It is possible that there could be other options that the Steelers are either exploring or will explore between now and the start of the preseason. Alexander is a good candidate to join this roster and provide a starting capable linebacker that possesses qualities that they do not currently have.
Myles Jack and the Devin Bush/Robert Spillane experiment are long gone. Now there is only Robert Holcomb and Elandon Roberts as the two that stand out as the top dogs to start at the position. Signing someone like Alexander would be an upgrade as a coverage linebacker and could round out this group better.
He is still only 28 years old and formerly played for the New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the New Orleans Saints. He was able to have a respectable score on pro football focus last season of 63. That performance is not going to light the world on fire, but he would be an upgrade over Roberts at least.