The Pittsburgh Steelers slashes the depth chart following a narrow preseason loss to Buffalo, prioritizing a four-quarterback room while narrowing the field for the upcoming season opener in Atlanta.
The Pittsburgh Steelers competed their preseason in a 28-27 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night, giving the coaching staff a head start on making a roster of 53 players before Sunday's deadline.
The Steelers will enter their Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons as a veteran team. On Thursday, Pittsburgh featured many of its young players against the Bills, allowing head coach Mike McCarthy and staff a chance to see what young players should make the team.
On Friday, the Steelers made 11 roster cuts, per ESPN's Adam Schefter:
- TE Jaheim Bell
- OL Greg Crippen
- DB Jaylon Guilbeau
- DB Jack Henderson
- DB Brandon Hill
- WR Jakobie Keeney-James
- DB Tamon Lynum
- DB Daryl Porter
- WR Cornell Powell
- RB Alex Tecza
- WR Isaiah Winstead
The Steelers have 79 players on their roster. they will need to release 26 more players to get to the 53 number required by the NFL.
Following Thursday night's game, McCarthy said he felt the contest against the Bills would be a good measuring stick for his staff to gauge who would make the 53-man roster.
"These guys had to play a lot of football tonight," McCarthy said. "And a couple guys were really stressed between special teams and offense and defense. So, as a whole, I feel really good about our body of work that we were able to accomplish, not just the quarterbacks.
"It gives us a chance to set a plan as we go into these next 72 hours and get the roster in the best position we possibly can, but then move on and get ready for Atlanta."
Coming into training camp, the big question was about what the Steelers would do at quarterback. Aaron Rodgers is the obvious starter. Mason Rudolph locked up the QB2 job.
McCarthy said the Steelers plan to keep four quarterbacks on the roster, meaning rookie Drew Allar and second-year signal caller Will Howard will make the team.
Carrying four quarterbacks on the roster means the Steelers will have to cut more aggressively from another position. It remains to be seen where Pittsburgh chooses to make its final cut.
