Pittsburgh Steelers: What We've Learned Through Week 5 of Preseason
All five of the Pittsburgh Steelers' preseason games are over. All that remains between now and the start of their regular season on September 10 is to reduce the roster to 53 players on Saturday and build their practice squad on Sunday.
It's been a busy week for the Steelers, who have already reduced their roster to 75 players. Here is what we've learned in the fifth and final week of the Steelers' preseason.
Steelers Will Face Tom Brady
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Pittsburgh's new-look defense has been shaky during the preseason, so not having to face New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in Week 1 would have been a respite for a team that is still trying to put everything together.
But with Judge Richard Berman ruling on Thursday that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell overstepped the bounds of his authority in suspending Brady four games for his alleged involvement in deflating footballs, Brady will now be able to play.
Though the NFL will appeal the ruling, nothing will happen in time for Brady to again be handed down a four-game suspension to open the 2015 season. That means the Steelers will have to prepare for Brady, rather than his backup, Jimmy Garoppolo.
Steelers Add K Josh Scobee
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The Steelers found themselves down another kicker after their fourth preseason game, with Garrett Hartley suffering a hamstring injury. That came on the heels of a knee injury suffered by kicker Shaun Suisham in the team's preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings.
The team's third kicker of the summer is Josh Scobee, for whom the Steelers traded a 2016 sixth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars to acquire.
Scobee has spent the last 11 seasons with the Jaguars and has converted 80.8 percent of his 291 field-goal attempts in that time. The Steelers are likely keeping their fingers crossed that this is the last move they need to make at the kicker position this year.
WR Martavis Bryant's Suspension Upheld
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Steelers second-year receiver Martavis Bryant's four-game suspension was upheld by the NFL this week, meaning that the Steelers won't have use of his services until Week 5 of the regular season.
The suspension, for violations of the league's substance abuse policy, did not come as a surprise to head coach Mike Tomlin, who said on Tuesday (via ESPN's Jeremy Fowler), "He has issues that he's dealing with that are bigger than football. We're committed to assisting the man in that."
Bryant caught 26 passes for 549 yards and eight scores last year, but the Steelers still chose to take a Bryant-like player in Sammie Coates in the 2015 draft. Tomlin has intimated that Coates was drafted with Bryant's issues in mind.
Now Coates and Darrius Heyward-Bey will be tasked with picking up Bryant's slack to open the season.
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Steelers Restructure Three Contracts
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The Steelers freed up nearly $6 million in salary-cap room this week after restructuring the contracts of wide receiver Antonio Brown, tight end Heath Miller and kicker Shaun Suisham.
ESPN's Adam Schefter noted that Brown's new deal gives him an additional $2 million this year, with his future bonuses converted into 2015 salary. He will now earn $8 million this season instead of $6 million.
Steelers Depot calculated that Miller's restructure doesn't add any years to his contract but that it has given the team an additional $2 million in salary-cap room, while Suisham's has given them an additional $1.2 million.
Whether this money will be used to extend the contract of left tackle Kelvin Beachum or be spent another way has yet to be seen. But clearly, the Steelers wanted additional cap space as they head toward the start of the season.
Steelers Reduce Roster to 75 Players
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In addition to trading for kicker Josh Scobee, the Steelers also had league-mandated roster moves to make this week in order to get their roster down to 75 on Tuesday. In order to do so, the Steelers placed backup offensive tackle Mike Adams on the physically unable to perform list and put rookie cornerback Senquez Golson and kicker Garrett Hartley on injured reserve.
The players released were tight ends Cameron Clear and Ray Hamilton, defensive ends Niko Davis and Joe Kruger, offensive linemen Miles Dieffenbach, Kevin Whimpey and Collin Rahrig, receivers Kenzel Doe and C.J. Goodwin, running back Braylon Heard, cornerback Jordan Sullen and safety Ian Wild.
The Steelers will reduce their roster to 53 players by Saturday afternoon and can put together their practice squad the following day.
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