Recent additions to the Steelers roster could surprise in 2023
The Pittsburgh Steelers made a rare June addition to their roster by signing LB Nick Kwiatkoski on Tuesday.
Usually, all of the big name free agent signings and additions are over with before the start of the NFL Draft, and while Kwiatkoski won’t register as a headliner, there’s a chance that he and some other “under the radar” signings could end up making an impact for the team this season.
Let’s have a look at those names, starting with Kwiatkoski.
Nick Kwiatkoski
Kwiatkoski was signed after Pittsburgh brought him in for a tryout during minicamp. Originally drafted in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, Kwiatkoski played four seasons in Chicago before adding two more with the Las Vegas Raiders and last year for the Atlanta Falcons.
At this stage of his career Kwiatkoski is more of a special teams contributor than a defensive one. He has logged 60% or more of his team’s special teams snaps in four of his seven NFL season. Kwiatkoski also projects as a depth option at inside linebacker, with a career-high of 80% of snaps played at middle linebacker for the Raiders in 2020.
While it’s unlikely Kwiatkoski gets any time at inside linebacker, his veteran presence helps shore up deficiencies any left behind new starters Elandon Roberts and Cole Holcomb, as second-year pro Mark Robinson (who is only in his third year of playing the linebacker position ever) continues to develop.
Tanner Muse
Another addition who projects to playing more of a role as a special teams contributor, Muse spent the last two seasons with the Seahawks, who split him between playing safety and linebacker.
That’s where Muse could find some time in a Steelers defense which prioritizes hybrid players to deploy against backs and tight ends.
Like Kwiatkoski, Muse should factor in as more of a depth option at inside linebacker but that could change depending on how training camp shakes out with the current safety depth.
Keanu Neal
Safety depth was addressed this offseason by signing former Falcons first round pick Keanu Neal.
Neal, who has bounced around the league after a Pro Bowl selection in his second season (2017) also factors as a hybrid player who started as a safety and has flirted as an inside linebacker. His traits project to being a subpackage dimebacker but he could compete for more of a role just as Damontae Kazee did last season.
Like Kazee, I expect Neal to be used in DB-heavy schemes where the Steelers deploy three safeties. Barring any setbacks, he should see quite a bit of time as a pseudo starter in 2023.
Chandon Sullivan
With the release of nickel cornerback Arthur Maulet, Sullivan instantly ascends to assuming the starting slot corner role.
The five-year veteran comes to Pittsburgh having appeared in 71 career games including every single game he was available to play in over the last three seasons. Over that span he has played 71%, 77%, and 81% of his team’s snaps.
He is one season removed from having three interceptions with Green Bay and deflected seven passes with the Vikings in 2022.
I expect Sullivan to keep the starting slot cornerback role through training camp, and like Maulet, he will likely cede time to a top-heavy depth chart at the position which will allow Patrick Peterson, Levi Wallace, and rookie Joey Porter Jr. to cycle in and out of specific secondary schemes.
Markus Golden
A much higher profile signing that has flown too far under the radar, the 32-year-old Golden is a sack specialist who will join the Steelers as a security blanket behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith.
To remain fresh, we may not see Golden a lot: think Melvin Ingram a few seasons ago. However, that should allow this outside linebacker to maintain the pace entering his tenth NFL season. That should also help Watt and Highsmith maintain their own health and goals, which will be dangerous for opposing team’s quarterbacks!
Mason Rudolph
This may not qualify as a “signing” for many, but bringing back Mason Rudolph for another season keeps the Steelers quarterback room in the same state as it was in 2022.
Rudolph, the team’s 2018 third round pick, has starting experience in the league that is valuable enough for a backup passer, let alone someone who will likely be the team’s third option off of the bench. He should also factor in to helping a lot of the team’s depth players develop during camp and practices throughout the year too.
Yet the main play for bringing back Rudolph rests in the NFL’s new emergency quarterback rule, which will see the former Oklahoma State product dress on game days and be able to enter games as needed: something he is certainly familiar with doing on a moment’s notice.
It’s this experience which will prove to be invaluable, should the Steelers ever need to break the glass for an emergency in-game.
Hakeem Butler
One of the most dynamic players this spring in the XFL, Butler was scooped up by the Steelers for a tryout and quickly signed with the team one month ago.
The 6-5 Butler was sought after in the 2019 NFL Draft, but quickly fizzled as a fourth round pick of the Arizona Cardinals. He saw some time with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020, but only had one professional pass thrown in his direction.
That should change with the Steelers, who recently released WR Anthony Miller to presumably make more room on their roster for Butler, who offers size that no other receiver on the roster currently has. (George Pickens is two inches shorter and Miles Boykin is 6-4 but plays primarily special teams.)
That doesn’t mean Butler will ascend to having major playing time right away, but I can surely see a fit for him in red zone situations or to create mismatches elsewhere on the field, if merely by his presence alone.
