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Final 53 Man Roster Prediction

Again, Mike tomlin teams usually dont give playing time to rookies who miss camp with an injury... so them IR ing Howard and keeping Skylar is a real possibility, especially since it gives flexibility to trade Skylar if there is interest later in the season when more qb spots are open elsewhere from injuries...

To be honest, there will probably be a couple qbs available tomorrow that have similar value as Skylar, so his value wont be that great right now
 
This is what I would do as opposed to a prediction.

Quarterback (3) - I feel ok at QB. Rodgers should be the Steelers best QB since Ben. However, until we see him play it's hard to say. Rudolph is an okay backup and I think Howard can eventually be a good long-term backup.
Aaron Rodgers
Mason Rudolph
Will Howard
Thompson will probably make the initial roster with Howard going on the IR.

Running Back (4) - This is an upgraded backfield with more burst than they've had the past few seasons. By the middle of the season, this should be one of the better positional groups.
Jaylen Warren
Kenneth Gainwell
Kaleb Johnson
Lew Nichols
I could see Sermon making the roster as well, I just think Nichols offers more versatility with his skillset. However, Sermon's ability on special teams may earn him the final spot.

Tight End (4) - This quietly may be one of the best groups of tight ends in the league. Two tier-2 TEs and the premiere blocking TE in the NFL who the Steelers will hopefully use in the passing game as well.
Jonnu Smith
Pat Freiermuth
Darnell Washington
Connor Heyward
I wanted to cut Heyward, there just isn't a 6th receiver I think they'll do it for. The problem is he is the last guy I want touching the ball on offense and there are better blocking options. The whole 4 TE set is dumb. Just bring out an extra lineman if Smith is going to do that.

Wide Receiver (5) - Wilson and Miller stepped up in the preseason easing some fears, but this is still a weak group until proven otherwise.
DK Metcalf
Roman Wilson
Calvin Austin
Scotty Miller
Ben Skowronek
Woods didn't do anything to distinguish himself. If they keep six, I go Brandon Johnson. He is 6-2 and had a pretty good preseason compared to the other options.

Offensive Line (9) - We saw some good things from the starting five and I think individually they can perform. I'm not convinced the coaching is there to get them to perform well as a unit until deep into the season.
Broderick Jones
Isaac Seumalo
Zach Frazier
Mason McCormick
Troy Fautanu
Dylan Cook
Spencer Anderson
Andrus Peat
Ryan McCollum
I suppose there is a chance they keep 10, but I wouldn't. Not much quality depth this year.

Defensive Line (6) - If Harmon and Black continue to develop from their performance in the preseason and if Benton can live up to his potential, this group has some serious young talent. Keyword is "if".
Cam Heyward
Keeanu Benton
Derrick Harmon
Yahya Black
Daniel Ekuale
Isaiahh Loudermilk
Lee is my 7th if they keep one more. I just feel with three young guys (Benton, Harmon, and Black), the Steelers won't feel the need to keep an extra DL and instead keep an extra CB.

EDGE (4) - Best trio in the NFL. Herbig can put up some serious sack numbers as a situational pass rusher this year. He has to have one of the quickest first steps in the league.
TJ Watt
Alex Highsmith
Nick Herbig
Jack Sawyer
No question marks here.

Inside Linebacker (5) - Wilson looks improved and Holcomb appears back to health and playing at a high level. Harrison is doing just fine filling in for Roberts as the thumper. As long as Queen delivers, this is another talented group.
Patrick Queen
Payton Wilson
Cole Holcomb
Malik Harrison
Carson Bruener
It comes down to Robinson and Bruener. Robinson is pretty much a special teamer and he can step in as a run defender. I think Bruener has a similar set of skills, so I'm going with the younger player.

Cornerbacks (6) - Age and overconfidence is the only thing that worries me about this group. With a good pass rush, they have a chance to be a truly shutdown group as long as they don't try to do too much.
Jalen Ramsey
Joey Porter Jr.
Darius Slay
Brandin Echols
James Pierre
Beanie Bishop
I think the Steelers want to role out a lot of cornerbacks this season. Pierre offers special teams value and Bishop, while not great, was a playmaker last year.

Safety (4) - Please just do your job and don't be a liability. Elliott is the only one I feel really good with, but how will he be without Fitzpatrick?
DeShon Elliott
Juan Thornhill
Chuck Clark
Miles Killebrew
I would not mind if they brought in a FA safety to upgrade the depth. Easily the weakest group on the team.

Special Teams (3) - One of the best special teams units in the NFL.
Chris Bosell
Cameron Johnston
Christian Kuntz
Both punters are good, but watching the two in person, I felt Johnston's punts go a bit higher and he has more touch pinning the ball inside the 20.
Solid breakdown not surprising from you.👏

I will say both lines start off a little banged up. That could put a monkey wrench on the tail end of the 53. As in possible a T and DLman get kept and or brought in to shore up any concerns.

I wanted a vet T from the get go and with two DLmen on the mend add DE to the want list..
 
That isn't what those who watched all the practices said. By multiple reports he was clearly the worst QB of the 4 in practice. Despite how he played in games I think that spells his doom.
Do they value practices over game footage?

I think it was a mixed bag overall combining the two. I will say my biggest concern for Rudy is INTs.

Which for me makes the two on more of an even battlefield.

If Rudy is 2 in the pecking order I would keep him on a shorter leash compared to times past if he is thrust into action.
 
We'll see. Last season he let Russ be Russ and the offense clicked for a while, then he reverted back to Tomlinball, he can't seem to help himself.

Hope the offense is open and innovative this year, as that's all we can do is hope.

What time are the final cuts due?
I still think it'll be run centric and Rodgers will be asked to make the consistent throws when we need him to. He won't be throwing 40 times a game. Still run and boot action is what I see.
 
We'll see. Last season he let Russ be Russ and the offense clicked for a while, then he reverted back to Tomlinball, he can't seem to help himself.

Hope the offense is open and innovative this year, as that's all we can do is hope.

What time are the final cuts due?
Tomorrow, August 26th by 4pm.
 
Do they value practices over game footage?

I think it was a mixed bag overall combining the two. I will say my biggest concern for Rudy is INTs.

Which for me makes the two on more of an even battlefield.

If Rudy is 2 in the pecking order I would keep him on a shorter leash compared to times past if he is thrust into action.

I think there is ample proof from previous years that what guys do in preseason games is little more than tiebreakers for close battles based off of what they do in camp... we have seen plenty of preseason studs waived through the years...
 
Do they value practices over game footage?

I think it was a mixed bag overall combining the two. I will say my biggest concern for Rudy is INTs.

Which for me makes the two on more of an even battlefield.

If Rudy is 2 in the pecking order I would keep him on a shorter leash compared to times past if he is thrust into action.
I'd guess that with a player like Rudolph, it's a mix of practise, pre-season games, and history. I don't think he came into this off-season needing to prove his way onto the roster whereas Thompson and Howard did. If the team was already confident in his decision making then I doubt a couple of dumb throws changed that, but if that was part of their concern then it may have grown.
 
Not many surprises. For me, the biggest ones were releasing Chuck Clark (this was a good move) and keeping Donte Kent (I didn't think he'd make it).
 
Not many surprises. For me, the biggest ones were releasing Chuck Clark (this was a good move) and keeping Donte Kent (I didn't think he'd make it).

I actually think Clark was a chess move. He’s a vested veteran and not subject to waivers.

So I think they could have cut him to make another move easier, like getting Howard or Kent to IR or something like that.

I could see him circling right back. Unless they plan on playing a corner at safety, we only have 2 on the roster if you consider killebrew strictly ST.
 
I actually think Clark was a chess move. He’s a vested veteran and not subject to waivers.

So I think they could have cut him to make another move easier, like getting Howard or Kent to IR or something like that.

I could see him circling right back. Unless they plan on playing a corner at safety, we only have 2 on the roster if you consider killebrew strictly ST.
I would've like to see them go in a different direction. Clark was looking quite slow on the field.
 
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