The Pittsburgh Steelers were ridiculously busy over the Labor Day holiday weekend, and that was outside of the fact they trimmed their offseason roster from 80 players to 53. The team claimed two former players, quarterback Joshua Dobbs and Sean Davis, off waivers, and picked up punter Dustin Colquitt.
Combine that with the news of the practice squad being signed, the team announcing their 2020 captains and Cameron Heyward getting a new 4-year contract extension and it was quite possibly the busiest news weekend for the black-and-gold outside of NFL Draft weekend.
With that said, Mike Tomlin addressed the media via Zoom Tuesday at noon, and he spoke openly about why the team made the moves to bring in Dobbs, Davis and Colquitt when the opportunity presented itself.
As it pertains to Dobbs, Tomlin cited his intelligence, mobility and overall knowledge of the system which will help the team moving forward. Throw in the fact NFL teams can’t enough experienced quarterbacks on their roster and this move was a no-brainer for the Steelers.
As Tomlin said, Dobbs and Davis can be “game ready” for the Steelers in Week 1, which isn’t the case for every NFL franchise who picks up a new player after cuts have been made.
This per Missi Matthews of Steelers.com:
Coach Tomlin said bringing back Josh Dobbs made sense because of his intelligence and mobility. And Sean Davis was attractive, not just as a safety, but also his special teams work. "They can be game ready for us in a quicker fashion."
— Missi Matthews (@missi_matthews) September 8, 2020
As for Davis, when most fans saw the news of his return they immediately thought about how his presence will be a huge boost in the depth at the safety position. But Tomlin saw things slightly different.
What did Tomlin see?
Someone who can play special teams.
Safety Sean Davis was a 2nd round pick in 2016, was the #Steelers team rookie of the year that year, and yet Mike Tomlin said in picking him up this weekend when the WFT let him go, the first thought was the asset he can be on special teams.
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) September 8, 2020
Tomlin mentioned how Davis was a big special teams player for the Steelers in the early portions of his career, and they were looking to add to that part of the team. Throw in Davis’ ability to play both safety positions, and you can see why Tomlin said he is a capable starter as a backup.
The release of veteran punter Jordan Berry for Colquitt was another no-brainer, but Tomlin elaborated on what truly intrigued him about the former Kansas City Chiefs punter.
“Colquitt is a guy who’s been around forever.” Tomlin said. “We are really excited about his floor, 15 year veteran, seen a lot of circumstances, been in a lot of circumstances, we have a lot of comfort in his ability.
This per Brooke Pryor of ESPN:
Tomlin: "Colquitt is a guy who's been around forever. ... really excited about his floor, 15 year veteran, seen a lot of circumstances, been in a lot of circumstances, we have a lot of comfort in his ability." Also notes his experience as a holder.
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) September 8, 2020
Colquitt, along with Dobbs and Davis as it pertains to the Steelers, is a been there, done that type of player. Colquitt will be able to punt, and hold, with no problems, and Dobbs and Davis won’t take long to get re-acclimated to their old surroundings.
All in all, the Steelers’ team just got a lot better, and their roster deeper, over the past weekend. The moves all make sense, but will they pay off? Let’s hope they can all do their part to help the Steelers succeed in 2020.
Stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the New York Giants in Week 1 of the regular season on Monday Night Football.
For more from the Mike Tomlin Press Conference, check out the podcast recap below: