Earlier this week the Houston Texans released safety D.J. Swearinger from their roster. Reports swirled around why Swearinger, a solid safety in the NFL, was let go at this time of the year. Some stated it was Swearinger's attitude while others stated it was more of a financial move than anything else. Regardless, once released it was open season for teams to put in a waiver claim on the experienced safety.
ESPN's NFL insider Field Yates sent out this tweet a few days following the Tampa Bay Buccaneers picking up Swearinger off the waiver wire:
Source: 8 total teams put in a waiver claim on S D.J. Swearinger - TB, JAX, OAK, NYJ, ATL, BUF, PITT, BALT. Bucs had 1st priority.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) May 13, 2015
Eight teams wanted Swearinger on their roster, and the Pittsburgh Steelers were one of those eight teams. When seeing this information being broadcast on social media, I had to wonder what the Steelers might be thinking trying to bring Swearinger into the fold. After all, despite Troy Polamalu's retirement, the team's safety depth chart seems to be set heading into 2015, but the organization is obviously keeping their options open which speaks volumes about how they feel about their current crop of safeties.
Polamalu was a legend, there is no way around this simple fact, but the the team showing interest in the 2013 second round talent from the Texans tells me they are not sold on Shamarko Thomas, Mike Mitchell, Will Allen and even Gerod Holliman as a group.
Granted, the above list of Steelers' safeties doesn't exude confidence, but would the team risk a potential locker room virus being brought into the fold to increase their talent among the depth chart? Not to mention having to learn a new system with players who have been in the system for at least one season? It seems as if that was exactly the case in this situation. Reports on Swearinger refusing to play special teams and overall sour attitude is eerily similar to tales of LeGarrette Blount before the Steelers added him in the 2013 offseason.
Fans are split on the Steelers' current safety situation. Reported injuries to Mitchell possibly hindered his play in 2014, Allen proves a solid and consistent veteran to the group, Holliman is very much a question mark as a rookie and Thomas has yet to get a chance to prove his worth to the fan base in terms of production on the field.
The safety position certainly isn't a strong point on the team's roster, but the Steelers putting in a waiver claim on Swearinger this past week says plenty about how the organization feels about the current crop of safeties wearing black and gold.