What's Next? Steelers Roster Still Isn't Set

What to expect next from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Pittsburgh Steelers put together a 53-man roster and then switched it less than 24 hours later. So, now they have their actual roster, right? Wrong.

The Steelers aren't done yet. There are decisions to be made and changes to come in the upcoming days and weeks. Eventually, this team will need to activate three players (hopefully) off Injured Reserve. Before that, they could add another one to it - maybe.

Here's what could be next for the Steelers.

Activating Karl Joseph

Once the Steelers bring Joseph to the active roster, they'll need to make decisions on who goes. Marcus Allen heading to IR was floated around, but unless the inside linebacker had a setback, he wasn't mentioned as an injury for the Steelers during their final practice on Wednesday.

He and Ulysees Gilbert III remain the top choices for who's bumped, though. The Steelers kept six inside linebackers, but they don't need all of them.

Buddy Johnson and Robert Spillane aren't going anywhere. It'll either be Allen or Gilbert.

Looking Outside the Offensive Line

The Steelers' roster made a lot more sense after they brought back Rashaad Coward to the 53-man roster. However, placing Zach Banner on IR means this team's only backup tackle is Joe Haeg.

The Steelers boosted their available cap space to somewhere near $18 million. It's not to sit around waiting for next season, but instead for emergencies - like having to put your starting left tackle on a shelf for three weeks.

Russell Okung is still available, as well as a list of smaller, much-less noticeable options. Chaz Green and John Leglue are also on the practice squad, so this team has places to pick from.

Getting T.J. Watt Signed

Everyone is talking about how close T.J. Watt and the Steelers are in contract negotiations. They have to be close; Watt has been around all summer, working harder than pretty much everyone else on the field, but without pads on. He's probably not that friendly if the two sides aren't close.

The clock is ticking, however, and the two sides have a week to get a deal done before they head into the regular season and decided it'll have to wait until the spring.

My educated guess is that the deal gets done by the end of Friday (Sept. 3), Saturday at the latest. 

Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.

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