The end of preseason has always been the unofficial beginning of fall in my eyes. As I stare out my window, I can see a hint of color becoming more prevalent in the trees, the sun is setting earlier with each passing day, and the pumpkin coffee I have sitting next to me tastes like I’ll be turning on Halloween 6 later on in the day.
The preseason is now complete for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they will now have until Sunday night at 6:00 EST to trim their roster down to 53 players. And while the journey
will end for many, it appears one player on the bubble has a spot secured. Plus, a pair of rookie receivers show exactly why they were drafted, and several defenders will make it very difficult to let them go.
It’s the morning after game day. Let’s dive in.
The Steelers should not keep four quarterbacks
After the Steelers’ 28-27 loss to the Bills to close out the preseason, head coach Mike McCarthy was asked if all four quarterbacks did enough to secure a roster spot.
“Very accurate evaluation on your part,” McCarthy said via Brooke Pryor. “We’ve got two vets to win with, and two guys we’re excited about their future.”
Of course, nothing is official at the time of writing, but it certainly appears as if the Steelers will keep all four quarterbacks on their roster, which makes next to no sense. It would be one thing if Will Howard blew them away in exhibition play – he didn’t. He finished the preseason 26-of-40 with two touchdowns to three interceptions. For what it’s worth, both touchdowns he threw were a screen pass that Germie Bernard took 13 yards after making the first tackler miss, and practically a handoff to Lake McRee who dove over several players to get into the end zone.
That’s not to see there weren’t good throws. The pass to Robert Tonyan on the goal line in Week 1 against the Packers was his best throw of the preseason, and he made a 16-yard completion to Ben Skowronek over the middle in Week 2. However, if he really popped, the Steelers wouldn’t feel the need to keep Mason Rudolph.
Howard was comfortably the fourth-best quarterback for the Steelers throughout the summer. The logical decision would be to cut him and then sign him to the practice squad when no one claims him. Everyone in the Will Howard camp is so certain he would get claimed by another team, but that’s highly unlikely to happen. About 25-35 players total get claimed during roster cutdown. Last year, there were 29 players claimed. The year before that – 27, per Saad Yousuf of The Athletic. The high since 2015 is 44 players. The low is 17, which came back in 2020. Howard didn’t do anything in exhibition play to warrant a team putting in a claim for him. He would quickly have a home back on the Steelers’ practice squad should that be the route they would go.
Instead, they will likely keep Howard, assuming he doesn’t go on IR with an injury he suffered against the Bills. Even if he does go on IR, though, eventually they’d have to take him off, which would lead to the team eventually carrying four quarterbacks. Who’s the player that will lose their helmet because of it? Robert Spears-Jennings? Doneiko Slaughter? Both of whom have had tremendous summers. If Howard gets a spot over someone who can contribute elsewhere, it’s roster building malpractice.
Germie Bernard is WR3
I’ve seen enough from Bernard – he absolutely should be the starting slot receiver. The Alabama product has shown more this preseason than Roman Wilson has going on three seasons. It’s great that Wilson looked good in camp. It means nothing, though, when he does nothing come game time.
Bernard showcased exactly why the Steelers traded up to get him, making Max Hairston miss on a screen pass and taking it the rest of the way to the end zone. He finished his preseason with five catches for 64 yards and a touchdown. And as impressive as his first (unofficial) touchdown was, it may not have been his best play of the preseason. In Week 1 against the Packers, he caught a ball on the right sideline made several defenders miss, and picked up 25 yards.
The best thing the Steelers could do at receiver right now is give Bernard the No. 3 spot on the depth chart, see if they can get a late-round pick swap in exchange for Roman Wilson, and sign a veteran to be the No. 4 wide receiver Brandin Cooks would be the name I’d prefer. He’s still a quality deep threat, and he had a nice pair of seasons under McCarthy from 2023-24, catching 80 passes and 11 touchdowns in that two-year span.
Kaden Wetjen puts exclamation point on preseason
The rookie out of Iowa began the preseason with a 74-yard catch and a touchdown, and he ended it by showing exactly why the Steelers took him in the fourth round.
The two-time Jet Award winner struggled to get anything going in the return game in the first half. In the third quarter, though, he sprung away from the Bills’ punt coverage and returned a kick 45 yards for a touchdown. Should he be able to house at least one kick during the regular season, many will forget about the Steelers reaching in the fourth for a return specialist. While he rode the highs and lows of his first NFL training camp, the highs are very high for one of the best return men in college football history.
Several defenders make their case for roster spots
There will be at least one defender worthy of a roster spot who doesn’t get one – which, again, makes the likelihood of Will Howard having a spot even more irrational.
Devan Boykin had a strong preseason and led the team with nine tackles on Thursday. D’Shawn Jamison has been a practice squad mainstay for Pittsburgh over the last two years and appeared in three games in 2025. He’ll likely be placed on the practice squad again despite a nice preseason. Slaughter and Spears-Jennings are another pair of guys who are on that roster bubble, and one or both could be placed on the practice squad.
Having a lot of quality players is a good problem to have, and Pittsburgh may have one of the deeper set of reserves in the NFL once Week 1 rolls around.
Let us know what you think in the comments. Be sure to bookmark Behind the Steel Curtain for all the latest news, breakdowns, and more!
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