Steelers make second round of roster cuts, including Antoine Brooks Jr.

One of the changes for all 32 NFL teams in 2021 is how the teams will handle trimming their offseason roster. The offseason roster starts with 90 players, and, in the past, used to be trimmed from 90 to 75, and then 75 to 53.

Not anymore. Now, after Week 1 of the preseason teams have to cut their rosters from 90 to 85. After Week 2 of the preseason it goes from 85 to 80, and after the preseason is when the roster needs to be set at 53 players.

Steelers fans shouldn’t forget the Hall of Fame game is considered just an extra preseason game. The first official week of the preseason, or Week 1, was their game Thursday night vs. the Philadelphia Eagles. They continued their preseason Saturday night when they hosted the Detroit Lions at Heinz Field in Week 2.

With all that said, the Steelers had to cut five players to get their roster to the league mandated 80 players. Here is who got cut:

OL Aviante Collins
WR Tyler Simmons
RB Pete Guerriero
LB Calvin Bundage

Waived/Injured:
Antoine Brooks Jr.

There really are no surprises to this list except Brooks Jr. being released due to being injured. Brooks was a player who was given the first shot at the nickel/slot cornerback position, and his injury during the Hall of Fame game has kept him sidelined ever since. The hope was he would return to the team sooner rather than later, but that doesn’t seem to be the case at this point.

The Steelers very well could be looking for cornerback help in the coming days/weeks as they prepare for the regular season with a big need to fill on the defensive side of the ball.

The Steelers now turn their attention to the Carolina Panthers this Friday night in Charlotte in Week 3 of the NFL Preseason.

In the meantime, be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the Pittsburgh Steelers as they wrap up training camp, complete the preseason and prepare for the 2021 regular season.