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Steelers Should Sign One USFL Star

If the Pittsburgh Steelers want another defender, they should look close to home.

Noah Strackbein

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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers only have six inside linebackers on the roster and no open spots on their 90-man team remaining. But with plenty of changes coming to their group between now and the preseason, thinking about another inside backer shouldn't be off the table.

As the USFL season winds to a close, players will be looking for NFL homes before training camp. The Steelers may have found two spring league stars in Hakeem Butler and Luq Barcoo, but it might not - and shouldn't - stop them from adding another. 

Currently, the Steelers have six inside linebackers, and typically, they heave into camp with seven before keeping five on their 53-man roster. Even if they believe Mark Robinson, Tanner Muse, and Chapelle Russell/Nick Kwiatkoski are the right fits behind Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts, competition is always best, and adding another name to compete shouldn't hurt anyone. 

With that final roster spot, the Steelers should consider signing Pittsburgh Maulers' star Reuben Foster. 

Heading into the USFL playoffs, Foster has contributed 53 tackles and an interception to the Maulers defense. The inside backer has manned a Pittsburgh unit that sits second in points allowed and first in yards allowed per game. They also lead the league in turnovers. 

Foster has 16 games of starting experience in the NFL and is five years removed from off-field troubles that led to an early departure from the league. He's been healthy for three years following an ACL surgery and is making plays in the spring league - winning Defensive Player of the Week in Week 3 of the season. 

The Steelers have brought in two inside linebackers for tryouts during minicamp, and ended up signing one, leaving them with six. Last offseason, they kept seven. With Holcomb slowly working his way into the defense as he recovers from foot surgery last season, Pittsburgh is going to want more bodies to take reps - and they're already one behind.

As for ways to create that final roster spot, the team currently has 13 wide receivers on the roster, 11 defensive tackles, seven offensive guards and seven offensive tackles. It's almost impossible for all of them to touch the field for meaningful reps during training camp as is. Lessing any of the groups wouldn't hurt the roster. 

It's been a long time since Foster found himself with a shot in the NFL. He's far from a lock if he signs with any team, but chances are some are considering the move as they prepare for training camp. 

The Steelers should be one of them. 

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Noah Strackbein
NOAH STRACKBEIN

Noah is the Publisher for All Steelers, Inside the Panthers (InsideThePanthers.com) and Inside the Penguins (InsidethePenguins.com), and is the host of All Steelers Talk (YouTube.com/AllSteelersTalk). A Scranton native, Noah made his way to the Pittsburgh sports scene in 2017. Now, he's pretty much full-yinzer.

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