All these players seemingly do not fit the direction that the Steelers are going in 2023. All of them have seen their shelf life with this roster extended for one reason or another. They will likely be cut by the time final roster transactions need to be made official across the league late this summer. Most of the names on this list have been seen as cap casualties earlier this offseason, and others have been draft busts.
Pittsburgh is normally a patient franchise and they saw no reason to let these players loose to the free agency world yet. Unless things change between now and the start of the pre-season process, these players will have a shot at making the club. Even though it did not make a lot of sense to keep these players around now, they could always turn things around and shock everyone by the time final roster cuts come rolling in.
Punting is going to be a tough competition for the incumbent
Everything is set at the competition at punter with Pressley Harvin III set to fight Braden Mann for the starting gig. It should not shock anyone that the team felt the need to add some veteran competition at punter with the type of career Harvin is having. He could always take a step forward this year with an open competition and retain his spot, but that does not seem likely.
Keeping Harvin around for this competition is not the worst idea, but you mostly know what you have from him. Looking outside and having two punters come into the building to fight for that job might be the best option. Something that could end up happening if both Harvin and Mann struggle would be bringing in another option from another club when final cut down day rolls around.
All of the additions on the defensive line will cause for some to be sent packing
Omar Khan has been active during his first offseason as general manager of the Steelers. He has added both quantity and quality to certain positions to overhaul different areas of this roster. Getting better in the trenches on both sides of the ball has been one of the biggest accomplishments for this front office this offseason.
Trying to add quality depth and a starter at nose tackle is something this team desperately needed to do. They were able to do that by signing a couple of veteran free agents to come in and compete for roster spots. Pittsburgh was also able to draft a quality player, Keeanu Benton, in the second round of this past draft. He should command a chunk of playing time throughout his rookie season.
Between the different additions through free agency and the draft, this should spell disaster for Montravius Adams. The big man used to have a bigger role on this team, but his play pushed him back into a depth role. He accounts for too much against the cap and probably should have been a cap casualty months ago. Releasing Adams would save the club a chunk of change, but that would likely not be used for anything to help this team immediately.
It makes little sense for the Steelers to keep around this offensive lineman
As stated earlier in the article, bringing fresh faces into the trenches on this roster is something this front office targeted throughout the offseason. They added a handful of new players to the Steelers through free agency and the draft. They were able to add a left tackle and three interior offensive linemen that should be upgrades for their projected roles on this club.
Some could question if Kevin Dotson will see a missing roster spot when final cuts come in, but the team should only consider parting with him if a trade offer rolls around. It would likely not take much to move Dotson from the Steelers, so if a trade was made expect a similar caliber player to come back or a late round pick. Keeping an experienced starter as a backup would be a better decision than trading or releasing him.
Another interior offensive lineman that makes a lot of sense to cut bait with is Kendrick Green. Perhaps the most obvious choice out there right now unless he can somehow have a great training camp portion of the pre-season. He does possess center and guard flexibility, which is a plus, but he has been a draft bust and will likely be gone sooner rather than later.
Pittsburgh could have saved a decent chunk of change by cutting this corner
Khan has not been afraid to put his stamp on this roster and that will be shown by the number of new starters on this team. Ahkello Witherspoon was one of the starting corners on defense last year and carried high expectations heading into last season. He did not hold up his end of the bargain and suffered an injury that took him out of the lineup.
Earlier this offseason saw plenty of coverage that called for Witherspoon to be released. He would have saved the Steelers a decent chunk of change, and that could still be the case if they release him in June. That would save the club an extra four million dollars roughly, but it is likely too late to add any quality free agents at this current moment.
Bringing Witherspoon into camp might not be the worst idea as he has shown the ability to be a quality starter at different points in his career. He is also a free agent following this season so this would be his prove it year. This cornerback also has a lot of starting experience with the Steelers, but things are just weird between player and team right now. It looks like his days are numbered with the black and gold.
The Steelers made a bad choice by keeping a return specialist around
Special teams are a forgotten part of football most of the time until the pre-season portion of the year begins. Most players make their living off special teams as they get onto the roster based on that performance alone most times. There are going to be a lot of new faces that either sit in the return specialist spot or cover punts and kicks.
With the turnover that was widespread across this roster during the offseason, there is going to be a lot of competition for different special teams' duties. The Steelers will have three or four players gunning for the return specialist job come training camp. Gunner Olszewski, Jordan Byrd, Anthony Miller. and Calvin Austin III will battle for that position.
One player that shockingly stayed on the team last year, let alone this part of the offseason is Olszewski. He lost his return specialist job early into last season and lost most of his snaps at receiver. Steven Simms jumped into the fold and started to develop into a more dependable player. Olszewski accounts for a decent chunk against the cap and it makes little sense to keep him around unless he turns things around quickly this pre-season. He was another signing from last year's free agency period that has not worked out.