What did the Steelers do right and wrong with their first 53-man roster?

What did the Steelers do right and wrong with their original 53-man roster?

Cutdown Day is a big deal, a key date on the NFL calendar, for the Steelers as much as for everyone else. As each team tinkers with its initial 53-man roster, that initial roster tells us a lot about where teams stand. The Steelers' initial roster may seem slightly disappointing this year – even with some names that sounded more exciting before.

Take, for example, the fact that Cory Trice Jr., Darius Rush and Beanie Bishop Jr. are all on the roster. Okay, that's all well and good – but who's going to step in when injuries happen? Are the Steelers adequately covered with these young, unproven players at cornerback?

Well, maybe they are, maybe they aren't. We won't know until we see how things play out — including any changes the Steelers might make. All we know is what we think about the roster right now, and that's all we're discussing right now.

So, in your opinion, what did the Steelers do right and wrong with the roster? Don't worry about there being some changes, just look at the original roster and make your own judgement. Because that's what the Steelers will be looking at anyway as they go through cuts and trade candidates to see where they need to improve.

One striking element is the eight defensive linemen, despite DeMarvin Leal's obvious positional flexibility. Rookie Logan Lee, drafted in the sixth round, was certainly one of the most surprising players retained this year. But that's also a strong indication that the Steelers could make a move here by signing a player at a different position and losing a defensive lineman.

Most positions performed exactly as expected, aside from injuries – I think we can say that about the entire offense. Aside from Dylan Cook's injury, which was so serious that the Steelers placed him on the reserve/injured list, and Dez Fitzpatrick being cut, I and most of us had that whole side of the ball absolutely under control.

I've had rosters with only three outside linebackers, so this doesn't surprise me. And the Steelers avoided a decision on Ryan Watts because he obviously had a serious injury. Instead of keeping Thomas Graham Jr., however, they kept defensive back Jalen Elliott. Did they do that right – and will it even matter tomorrow?

The Steelers' 2024 season is approaching, after another disappointing year that ended with a first-round playoff loss. The only change in the annual formula of late is whether they'll be eliminated early or miss the playoffs altogether. They've had a long offseason since the Buffalo Bills put them out of their misery in January.

The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Will Russell Wilson make them a Super Bowl-caliber team or will they waste a year? How will the team continue the depth diagram?

After weeks of training camp and preseason games, the regular season is here. The Steelers have made numerous changes through signings, trades and firings. More than usual, they seemed to help create holes and were confident they could fill them. Some they were able to fill, others less so. But now that we have so many pieces of the puzzle, we just have to ask ourselves a new set of questions.