The Pittsburgh Steelers finalized their initial 53-man roster Tuesday afternoon, but that doesn’t mean their roster is complete. Like other teams in the NFL, Pittsburgh is looking at outside options to potentially add to the team and shuffling its roster after trimming it down.
Since I am my own pro scouting department, I looked at over 1,000 names yesterday to see which names make the most sense and would be of interest to the Steelers. I kept it primarily to three positions of need: wide receiver, center, and cornerback. Here are 12 names that make sense.
Wide receiver
Miles Boykin
The most logical name on this entire list is Boykin. Reports said he would be on the New York Giants roster, but he was released yesterday along with former Steelers WR Allen Robinson II. New York would like to bring him back to the practice squad, but if I were Pittsburgh, I would be the first person on the phone to offer a 53-man roster spot (and 53-man roster salary).
Pittsburgh needs a good gunner and coverage unit to cover Cameron Johnston’s long punts. He has admittedly had below-average hang time. The preseason results have been poor, and the two gunners currently at CB Darius Rush and Vinnie Bishop don’t inspire much confidence. Boykin would be a huge upgrade to be the immediate starter and the fifth wideout to get a weekly hat.
Ben Skoronek
If Pittsburgh wants a player similar to Boykin, Skoronek is the option. With size, versatility and special teams value, Skoronek played over 300 snaps on special teams last season. In 2022, he was more of a possession receiver, but caught 39 passes with the Los Angeles Rams. He spent 2024 with the Houston Texans, but was pushed out of the deep room.
The biggest problem is that Skowronek has no experience as a gunner. Last year, he was used as a personal guard for Miles Killebrew in Pittsburgh. While he doesn’t provide the exact help Pittsburgh needs, he’ll still find a place as a multi-phase special teams player who can fill multiple roles behind the 48-man game-day roster.
Terrace Marshall
Special teams aside, Marshall offers real wide receiver value. A second-round pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2021, Marshall has fallen out of favor with the Panthers’ new coaching staff. His play and production regressed last year, despite Carolina having one of the worst receiving rooms in the NFL. In nine games, he caught just 19 passes for 139 yards and zero scores.
But Marshall is only 24 and has size. He had a decent preseason, catching five passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. That doesn’t move the need much, and he certainly won’t be No. 2 ahead of Van Jefferson, but he’s a potential No. 3 with upside. Marshall has been primarily an outside receiver, but he also has slot experience.
center
Sam Mustifer
Mustipher brings some familiarity after spending 2023 with the Baltimore Ravens, playing 32 snaps and starting two games in the final regular season game against the Steelers. He has started 42 games in his career, but is still young at 28 years old.
Ryan McCollum has sat as Zach Frazier’s backup and his time in the system is important. But if you want an upgrade and someone with more experience, Mustipher makes sense. He’s logged over 2,500 NFL snaps at center and is a full-time starter for the Chicago Bears in 2021 and 2022. Ideally, he’s a backup like he was last season. Mustipher was cut by the Broncos yesterday but has been highly regarded in the preseason for his run blocking.
Will Clapp
Clapp has the extra size to play guard/center, and he played guard in the preseason for the Buffalo Bills this year. He started 11 games for the Los Angeles Chargers last season, playing 699 snaps in the middle. He has a similar build to Mason McCormick, but also has experience.
The biggest problem may be health. He recently Placed on concussion protocol There are questions about his health and readiness for Week 1. Maybe he’ll try to sneak onto the Steelers’ practice squad.
Matt Hennessy
Hennessey was a name suggested in the offseason, and has ties to Arthur Smith from his time with the Atlanta Falcons. He’s versatile, played guard this preseason with the Philadelphia Eagles, and I liked his tape from his Temple days. He hasn’t played much lately, but could be a good backup scheme.
Cornerback
Jake McPherson
Here’s a long list of names, as Pittsburgh seems to need another veteran. I mentioned McPherson a few days ago in the “Special Teams/Gunner” list, and as expected, he’s off waivers from the Philadelphia Eagles. The ace gunner has recovered from a torn Achilles tendon in 2023 and has played in the preseason. He’s not an ideal 3 corner, and they’ll probably keep Corey Trice Jr. in that role, but he could be a 4/5 in a James Pierre-type role.
Duke Shelley
Shelly has inside/outside experience, but his size (5’8”, 173 pounds) makes him a better fit in the slot. His most productive season came in 2022, when he played nearly 400 defensive snaps for the Minnesota Vikings, breaking up eight passes and intercepting one.
Last year, he spent most of his time on special teams for the Los Angeles Rams before being cut by the Minnesota Vikings. There’s a lot of versatility for Pittsburgh to work with.
Nation Light
Looking for a bigger outside corner and experience in the room, Wright fits the bill. He has just 269 career defensive snaps, but that’s a lot more than Corey Trice Jr. or Darius Rush. He’s got the Steelers’ size for the room, at 6.042 and nearly 33-inch arms. Wright also provides some gunner work, though his experience is fairly limited (20 snaps in 2023, three in the preseason).
Rock Yashin
A name I’ve mentioned a few times over the years, Ya-Sin was a regular until the Steelers traded him for Devin Bush in 2019. A tough player from Temple, Ya-Sin can tackle and play inside or outside, but has taken most of his snaps outside of late.
He is still 28 years old, but has played in 66 games, 39 starts. Ya-Sin played mostly as a reserve in Baltimore last season, but he played 279 defensive snaps for the Ravens. His only start this year came in the regular season finale against Baltimore, where he had four tackles. He would be an experienced enough player to back up Joey Porter Jr. and Donte Jackson.
Nick Needham
If the Steelers wanted to upgrade their run-down option beyond Vinnie Bishop Jr., Needham makes perfect sense. He’s had a harder time finding playing time in recent years, but he’s logged more than 600 snaps in 2021 and nearly 300 in 2022.
Needham, who spent the summer in Miami, played primarily in the slot, earned top marks as a tackler and had a good training camp overall. He also saw snaps at safety, creating flexibility in sub packages when the Steelers wanted to rotate Minkah Fitzpatrick down.
Kemon Hall
no way very An under-the-radar name, Hall sounds like a rookie, but he has NFL experience. He logged 301 snaps as a key special teamer for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021. But he played little in 2022 and didn’t log a single snap last season. Still, Hall has been one of the most successful slot corners this preseason as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, allowing a 45 percent completion percentage and intercepting a pass.
Hall seemed like a better fit for the practice squad than a replacement for No. 53, but his name was unfamiliar until I did some more research.
Hugo Amadi
Pittsburgh, a name suggested by Dave Bryan, brought Amadi out of Oregon for a pre-draft visit in 2019. He bounced around after being drafted by Seattle, but settled on New Orleans in 2017, where he played in all 17 games. He saw 132 special teams snaps and 82 on defense.
He didn’t play much this preseason, only in the finale, but he has the versatility of a slot/safety with some gunner background. A nice chess piece at the end of the Steelers roster.
Practice Squad Offensive Tackle
I just wanted to list a few practice squad OT options that I think the team should add to from the outside, even though I know it’s tough to find outside tackle help on the waiver wire. These names are a mix of veterans and young players.
Richard Gurage/Buffalo Bills
David Sharp/Houston Texans
Steven Jones/Jacksonville Jaguars (more of a guard, but liked his tape coming out of Oregon)
Lucas Niang/Kansas City Chiefs
Dalton Wagner/Las Vegas Raiders
Jamarco Jones/Detroit Lions
Jared Jones-Smith/Atlanta Falcons
AJ Akuri/Los Angeles Rams
Max Scharfing/Philadelphia Eagles
