Free agency, draft behind them, Steelers still have plenty of means to add to 2023 roster

There is no offseason in the NFL — the league’s marketing machine wouldn’t allow that to happen.

For a sport in which most teams are playing the game meaningfully for roughly just 51 of the 8,760 hours available in each calendar year, just about anything can be turned into an event.

That, of course, includes free agency and the draft, the heart of roster building for the 32 teams. But while those are largely the domain of March (free agency) and April (the draft), roster construction hasn’t ended now that the draft has.

The Steelers still have work to do over the remainder of the run-up to the start of training camp in the final week of July at Saint Vincent.

“We’re going to continue to evaluate what opportunities exist to improve our roster,” general manager Omar Khan said soon after the draft wrapped up, “if there are any.”

While Khan has yet to hit his one-year mark as general manager, the Steelers organizationally in recent years have increasingly used the late-spring/early-summer window to add potential impact talent to the roster.

And with some areas of the roster looking like they still need fortifying, it would surprise no one if the Steelers added another veteran or two over the next 2 ½ months.

“Any time we can … add a player with talent, we will,” assistant general manager Andy Weidl said last week.

Andy Weidl on how it was not difficult “catching up” upon joining the organization so late last offseason because he worked to get on the same page with Mike Tonkin, et al pic.twitter.com/ajMnccquI2

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) May 5, 2023

History suggests there will be some new additions to the roster by Monday, which marks the completion of the rookie minicamp this weekend at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.

The Steelers have signed at least two rookie tryouts from rookie minicamp over each of the past six offseasons that were not affected by covid-19. Additionally, the Steelers have been among the NFL’s active teams in signing players from spring minor leagues.

That former NFL fourth-round pick Hakeem Butler, recently of the XFL, will be among those working out at rookie minicamp signals the Steelers have significant interest in signing him. And why not, considering they have only three wide receivers on their roster who have more than seven NFL receptions over the past two seasons combined. Plus, receiver was a position the Steelers did not address in the draft.

Quarterback is another position the Steelers often look at during rookie minicamp. But with Minnesota product Tanner Morgan already signed as an undrafted free agent and only one veteran (Mitch Trubisky) behind young starter Kenny Pickett, the Steelers instead might choose the veteran route to fill out their stable of camp quarterbacks to four.

However, the only experienced veterans left are Teddy Bridgewater, Carson Wentz, Joe Flacco and, yes, Mason Rudolph.

The Steelers have the cap space to add a non-rookie or two. According to the NFLPA calculations, $7.9 million of it, as of now. The signing of the seven-player draft class will end up swallowing up about $4.3 million of that, though, and the Steelers (like most teams) prefer to keep a buffer in case of unforeseen circumstances — not that some clever maneuvering can’t be pulled off to clear that hurdle.

In addition, the Steelers roster sits at 87, three shy of the offseason limit. That’s the clearest indication management is not done.

“We feel good about some of the work that we’ve been able to do,” coach Mike Tomlin said after the draft. “(But) there are multiple ways to add to your talent pool.”

One advantage to playing the waiting game with free agents is after May 1, any unrestricted free agent signed does not factor into the formula used to distribute compensatory draft picks to teams.

Over the past two years combined, the Steelers added five veteran free agents after the draft and before camp opened: guard Trai Turner (June 24) and outside linebacker Melvin Ingram (July 19) in 2021, and safety Damontae Kazee (May 3), defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi (June 21) and running back Jeremy McNichols (July 26) last year.

All but McNichols — injured early in camp — started some for the Steelers. Kazee and Ogunjobi each re-signed this spring.

More likely, though, if the Steelers sign a veteran at this point, it will be a fringe contributor of the likes of Johnny Holton, who in mid-May 2019 was added and stuck as a No. 5 WR and special-teams contributor.

That doesn’t mean Khan and Co. won’t be on the lookout for a bigger name who might have slipped through the cracks. One way or another, the 2023 Steelers roster isn’t a finished product.

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