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The updated 2020 Pittsburgh Steelers offseason roster going into the draft

There are several positions the Steelers will need to bolster before the start of training camp

By Dave.Schofield
Pittsburgh Steelers v Cleveland Browns Photo by: 2019 Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2020 roster is taking shape prior to the NFL draft. With a number of draft picks and undrafted rookie free agents helping to fill out the rest of the open spots, exactly which positions will be added is a big questions. Interestingly enough, there are a few positions the Steelers still don’t have enough players to fill in all the spots they kept last season. Here is a breakdown of the Steelers roster by position with the number of players kept (in parentheses) on their initial 53-man roster in 2019.

Offense

Quarterback (3)

  1. Ben Roethlisberger
  2. Mason Rudolph
  3. Devlin Hodges
  4. Paxton Lynch
  5. J.T. Barrett

Analysis: The front office said they are happy with the current quarterback room. While many do not want the Steelers to address the position in the draft, several national analysts have the Steelers doing it early.

Running Back (3)

  1. James Conner
  2. Jaylen Samuels
  3. Benny Snell Jr.
  4. Kerrith Whyte Jr.
  5. Trey Edmunds
  6. Ralph Webb
  7. Darrin Hall

Analysis: Although many feel running back is a great position of need, the Steelers are returning five players who had carries in 2019. If things go as they did last season, more than one of them will not make the roster even without addressing the position in the draft.

Fullback (1): Derek Watt

Analysis: The Steelers only carry one, and this year it’s a new face.

Wide Receiver (5)

  1. JuJu Smith-Schuster
  2. Diontae Johnson
  3. James Washington
  4. Deon Cain
  5. Ryan Switzer
  6. Amara Darboh
  7. Quadree Henderson
  8. Jamal Custis
  9. Anthony Johnson
  10. Saeed Blacknall

Analysis: Although the Steelers initial roster in 2019 only had five wide receivers, they added a sixth before the first game. It’s very rare where the Steelers don’t draft a wide receiver so look for this group to expand.

Tight End (3)

  1. Vance McDonald
  2. Eric Ebron
  3. Zach Gentry
  4. Kevin Rader
  5. Christian Scotland-Williamson

Analysis: Before the addition of Ebron, this position went from a big question mark to not much of a need.

Offensive Line (9)

  1. Maurkice Pouncey
  2. David DeCastro
  3. Alejandro Villanueva
  4. Matt Feiler
  5. Chukwuma Okorafor
  6. Stefen Wisniewski
  7. Zach Banner
  8. Derwin Gray
  9. J.C. Hassenauer
  10. Christian DiLauro
  11. John Keenoy
  12. Anthony Coyle
  13. Jarron Jones

Analysis: There are already a lot of names, but the Steelers will almost assuredly address one of their offensive line positions in the draft if not more.

Defense

Defensive Line (6)

  1. Cameron Heyward
  2. Stephon Tuitt
  3. Tyson Alualu
  4. Daniel McCullers
  5. Isaiah Buggs
  6. Chris Wormley
  7. Henry Mondeaux
  8. Cavon Walker
  9. Dewayne Hendrix

Analysis: The position designation for a couple of these players is quite intriguing. Hendrix is listed as a DE on the Steelers website but could very well end up at outside linebacker. Only one player is listed as a nose tackle at Steelers.com and it is surprisingly Chris Wormley.

Outside Linebacker (5)

  1. T.J. Watt
  2. Bud Dupree
  3. Olasunkanmi Adeniyi
  4. Tuzar Skipper

Analysis: While the Steelers did keep five outside linebackers to start 2019, only four made it to the first game. Between the two linebacker positions, the Steelers generally keep nine players. Either way, they don’t have enough at one position or the other.

Inside Linebacker (5)

  1. Vince Williams
  2. Devin Bush
  3. Ulysees Gilbert III
  4. Robert Spillane

Analysis: To say there isn’t a void at inside linebacker going into the draft would be naïve. The Steelers don’t even have enough players on their expanded roster to fill up what they would keep when they cut down to 53. Unless you want to count their extra long snapper.

Cornerback (6)

  1. Joe Haden
  2. Steven Nelson
  3. Mike Hilton
  4. Cameron Sutton
  5. Justin Layne
  6. Alexander Myres
  7. Breon Borders
  8. Arrion Springs

Analysis: The Steelers seem pretty set at the quarterback position for the first time in a while. Whether they keep five or six has to do as much with safety as it does cornerback as the Steelers usually keep 10 players in their secondary.

Safety (4)

  1. Minkah Fitzpatrick
  2. Terrell Edmunds
  3. Jordan Dangerfield
  4. Marcus Allen
  5. John Battle
  6. Tray Matthews
  7. Tyree Kinnel

Analysis: With a very top-heavy position group, don’t be surprised if the Steelers add another player or two in the next week.

Specialists

Placekicker (1)

  1. Chris Boswell

Punter (1)

  1. Jordan Berry

Long Snapper (1)

  1. Kameron Canaday
  2. Christian Kuntz

Analysis: These positions will definitely expand before training camp, but will be down to one each when it comes to the regular season roster. The last thing anyone wants is to make either their kicker or punter have to take every snap during the preseason.

Totals

Offense: 41

Defense: 32

Specialists: 4

Total: 77

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