Pittsburgh Steelers Week 1 Stock Report

The Pittsburgh Steelers' 53-man roster is set. The practice squad, though fluid, has also been established. We are just a few short hours away from the team taking the field on Thursday against the New England Patriots in the 2015 NFL season opener. Things are happening.

But with the roster and practice squad established, some players are on the rise while others are sliding downward. Here is the Week 1 stock report for the Steelers.

Stock Up: WR Tyler Murphy

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Because Martavis Bryant is set to serve a four-game suspension to start the season, we'll get a chance to see some of the receivers who would typically be much lower on the Steelers depth chart. One of these receivers, at least according to one reporter, is former Boston College quarterback Tyler Murphy.

In his Tuesday chat, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ed Bouchette was asked, "How much and where will Murphy play?" His response: "I think he will be No. 4 and he will play in the slot when they go to 4." That means he would be one spot behind Darrius Heyward-Bey and one ahead of drafted rookie Sammie Coates.

Bouchette was even asked about Coates and how much he should be expected to play on Thursday night. "None," was Bouchette's call on Coates' playing time.

Despite this, Coates is listed as No. 2 on the depth chart behind Antonio Brown and could still be in line to get considerable work early in the year. Bouchette could be wrong.

But it's not incorrect to note that Murphy has been one of the positive surprises of the Steelers' summer, catching seven passes on five targets for 89 yards and a touchdown. Coates had 179 yards and no touchdowns, but played twice as many snaps (per Pro Football Focus) as Murphy. He caught only 45.5 percent of his passes and dropped four of them. 

Murphy has proven to be the more reliable of the two, at least in a small sample size. So Bouchette may just be correct—Murphy could get the nod over Coates against New England in Week 1.

Stock Down: S Shamarko Thomas

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Since veteran Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu announced his retirement in the spring, the assumption has been that 2013 fourth-round draft pick Shamarko Thomas would be the one to take his place. That's how the Steelers have been proceeding all summer long.

But on Sunday, Thomas (via F. Dale Lolley of the Observer-Reporter) said that he had been demoted, benched in place of veteran Will Allen, at least for Week 1. Thomas has found the development disappointing, saying, "I've just got to keep my head up and keep working. That's all I can do."

According to Pro Football Focus, Thomas played 131 preseason snaps but tied for the Steelers' worst defensive grade, primarily due to his pass coverage. Thomas will likely get the opportunity to win the starting job back, but after holding onto it all summer and ultimately dropping in rank to Allen, it's hard to imagine Thomas' stock doing anything but dropping.

Stock Up: S Will Allen

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With Shamarko Thomas benched and his stock trending downward, there has to be an equal and opposite force on the Steelers' roster. That would be safety Will Allen, who has been named the team's Week 1 starting strong safety.

The reasoning is simple: Allen knows the defensive system better than Thomas. The Steelers have switched to a Cover 2 look in the secondary, and as F. Dale Lolley noted on Sunday, it's one that Allen is very familiar with. He ran it in Tampa, when Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was the Buccaneers' defensive coordinator, and he's been serving as a player-coach of sorts this summer to teach his teammates how to run the system.

Allen is 33 years old, the same age Troy Polamalu was when he retired this spring. But Allen has more tread left on the tires, having started only 39 games since 2004, including 11 with the Steelers. He may not be the starter all season long, as Thomas could get more comfortable with Pittsburgh's defense. But for now, Allen's stock is on the rise. 

Stock Down: WR/RB/KR Dri Archer

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Dri Archer appeared to be one of the Steelers who would benefit from the two-game suspension of running back Le'Veon Bell. Though DeAngelo Williams would be handling the bulk of the rushing duties during that time, Archer could see more playing time than usual as both a runner and a receiver. And even if not, he would still be serving as the team's primary kick returner.

But Archer's stock took a hit on Sunday, when the Steelers announced the signing of veteran Jordan Todman. Like Archer, Todman can run and catch, with 111 career rushes for 450 yards and 40 receptions for 314 yards. He also has worked as a kick returner, with 68 returns for 1,762 yards.

But Todman is bigger than Archer, which means he can be used more often than Archer, who is obviously a receiving target or a running back when he is on the field. And if Archer struggles as a returner again, Todman can take that job away from him, too.

Todman is behind Archer on the depth chart for the time being. But his presence on the team will directly push Archer. Right now, it's pushing him downward, but it could also prove to be just the motivation Archer needs to make an impact in 2015.

Stock Up: Alejandro Villaneuva

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva could have been nothing but a good story for the summertime. But instead, he has made the team's 53-man roster. And that's not the only reason his stock is on the rise.

No, the main reason is that he's currently the only reserve offensive tackle on the Steelers' roster. Villanueva is currently listed on the depth chart as the primary—and again, only—backup to right tackle Marcus Gilbert and left tackle Kelvin Beachum.

While that also means the Steelers have a crisis of depth at offensive tackle, it also means the team brass think enough of Villanueva to handle either job should he be asked to do it. Other offensive tackles will likely find their way onto the roster, and at some point later in the year, Mike Adams could be activated off the physically unable to perform list.

But for now, Villanueva has the backup tackle job locked down, which is impressive, considering how many positions (tackle included) he played in college at Army.