Steelers 2-a-days: WR Deon Cain a true camp wild card, LS Kameron Canaday has new contract

Editor’s note: Leading up to a unique Pittsburgh Steelers training camp staged at Heinz Field this year, the Tribune-Review will be running through the team’s 90-man roster, assessing each player’s outlook for the 2020 season. The breakdown will go through the roster, in mostly alphabetical order, two per day, between June 9 and July 23, a day that was originally planned to be reporting day for players to camp. (Contract data courtesy spotrac.com)

WR DEON CAIN

Experience: 13 regular-season games last season, spent rookie 2018 season on IR

Contract status: $675,000 cap hit in 2020, under team control for at least three more seasons

2020 outlook: Cain was a player the Steelers had their eye on during the 2018 draft, an event in which he’d unexpectedly fall down to the sixth round. A big-play threat with seemingly all the tools who won a national title at Clemson, the Steelers signed Cain off the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad in November.

Cain confidently proclaimed he could help immediately, then went out and played a not-insignificant role and produced in his first game with the Steelers. Cain certainly showed promise in six games with the team and is a dark horse to have a role in the offense in 2020. Still, it’s a crowded position room, and it also would not be surprising if Cain struggles to stick with the Steelers come time for the regular season. He might be one of the biggest wild cards of Steelers camp.

Deon Cain. ? #CHIvsIND

? @Fox59 pic.twitter.com/iXEBkl09uj

— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) August 25, 2019

LS KAMERON CANADAY

Experience: 4th season

Contract status: $1.29 million cap hit in 2020, will be free agent after 2021 season

2020 outlook: The Steelers put their money where their mouth was in regards to the trust they have in Canaday in March when they signed him to a two-year, $2.425 million contract that included a $450,000 signing bonus. Canaday served as Steelers’ long snapper the past three seasons after he beat out the rare long-snapper draft pick (Colin Holba) during the 2017 training camp. Canaday, who replaced longtime Steelers long snapper Greg Warren, hasn’t missed a game for the Steelers since.

Canaday was not without competition during last season’s camp — both in the form of Travis Wood and Christian Kuntz. Kuntz, a Chartiers Valley High School and Duquesne University alumnus, is back this offseason after a stint long snapping in the XFL. Canaday is expected to fend Kuntz off, but he better not slip.

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