The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the offseason with an extensive to-do list. There were players who had to leave and players had to be brought in, hopefully as upgrades. The Steelers had a very strong rookie class and we could see multiple first-year players bumping veterans for playing time.
Here are the four veterans who could lose significant snaps this season to their rookie counterpart.
Vince Williams
Last season, Williams played almost 72 percent of the total defensive snaps. When you consider how often the Steelers use sub-packages, Williams was asked to drop into coverage much more than in 2017 when he had eight sacks. The Steelers brought in Devin Bush because of his athleticism and this could relegate Williams to strictly base sets.
Ryan Switzer
I’ve gone on the record that I want to see Switzer have an expanded role in the offense this season. But the addition of Diontae Johnson could seriously derail those plans. The Steelers invested heavily in Johnson as well as veteran free agent Donte Moncrief. This could push Switzer out of his role as the slot receiver to get all the new guys on the field.
Jaylen Samuels
Going into 2018, we were huge fans of Samuels’ game. It was disappointing to see him on the sidelines until late in the season when James Conner was hurt. This season, Samuels is going to find himself in a battle with rookie Benny Snell Jr. for reps behind Conner. Snell is a special player and no one should be shocked if he ends up getting more touches than Samuels this season.
Artie Burns
This one might seem too obvious, but if the Steelers don’t release Burns before the start of training camp, he will have his hands full holding off Justin Layne in training camp. Joe Haden and Steven Nelson should start and Mike Hilton is the slot cornerback for now. This means Burns is going to be in direct competition with Layne to be the primary backup on the outside.
