Steelers Roster Holes Not Unusual, All Part Of The Master Plan: 'They Will Have Their Starting 11'

The Pittsburgh Steelers have hit a home run in the 2024 NFL Draft. While it is too early to predict absolute success since not one rookie has played a down of professional football yet, it still receives high marks. This is primarily due to where the players were projected to be drafted, versus where the Steelers obtained them; in nearly every case, it is a win. 

However, the offseason isn't over yet, and drafting rarely fills every need a team has. Drafting is divided between immediate needs and planning for the future. Now, the team will look to sign more players, including undrafted free agents, and possibly even re-sign some released players to help fill holes. 

On a recent North Shore Drive Podcast episode, host Chris Carter spoke with Ray Fittipaldo, both from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, about how they felt the draft went overall and what to anticipate for the rest of the offseason. They were mainly speaking of the slot cornerback position. The Steelers released Patrick Peterson after the 2023 season, and now they need someone else to partner with Joey Porter Jr., who is entering his second season. Rumors swirl that the team could re-sign Peterson, or even Cameron Sutton, who is currently dealing with some legal issues. Fittipaldo said fans should not be stressed about the need for a slot corner right now. 

"I always bring this up. It's not uncommon to go into training camp with a position that is unanswered. They've done it plenty of times in the past. They did it just last season with inside linebacker Kwon Alexander. Was it 2015 they traded for Brandon Boykin like two weeks into training camp? He ended up being the slot for most of that year," said Fittipaldo. "We're sitting here now talking about slot corner like it's a starting position, and it is, but so was inside linebacker this year. It's just that sometimes they have targeted free agents they are having dialogues with, and it just takes a little bit of time for these things to get done. They will have their starting 11 on both sides of the ball by the time training camp gets here."

According to Fittipaldo, the need fans feel for all spots to be filled by OTAs is not shared by teams. He said the teams primarily view OTAs as crucial to the young guys. It gives the coaching staff a chance to see these rookies in action and decide whether to move forward with them. 

If they don't like what they see from the young players, they can find a different available player to fill that spot. This means that spring and summer football are entirely different animals used in entirely different ways. 

Steelers Likely To Re-Sign Patrick Peterson

The Steelers' release of Peterson shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone. During the offseason, every team has to seek ways to save money, and Peterson's release saved Pittsburgh $6.85 million. Peterson, who had just finished his 13th season in the NFL, clearly stated that his goal had always been to play for 14 years.