3 Steelers who shouldn’t be on the Pittsburgh roster after the NFL trade deadline

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been one of the most consistent teams in the entire NFL for the last few decades. Time and time again, Mike Tomlin has led the Steelers to the postseason and to winning records.

But, times have changed a bit since Ben Roethlisberger retired. The team has seen a lot of movement, especially offensively. But, Tomlin has continued to win, including in 2024.

Pittsburgh has found themselves in the spotlight this week after Coach Tomlin mentioned the idea of switching quarterbacks after Justin Fields got off to a hot 4-2 start through six weeks. Now, Fields and Wilson are both getting first-team reps in this week and nobody really understands the future of the position in the Steel City.

But QB isn't the only position that could see some shake-up this season. In fact, there are players on the Pittsburgh roster right now who won't make it the full season with the team. Which three players shouldn't be on the Steelers roster after the NFL trade deadline?

3. TE Rodney Williams

The Steelers are one of those teams that love to use their tight ends. For as long as Tomlin has been the coach of the Steelers, tight ends have been a staple in their passing game as well as their rushing game. The same can be said for this year. Pittsburgh often employs two or even three tight end sets in both passing and rushing plays. Of their five touchdown catches this season, tight ends have reeled in four of them.

But the team doesn't need more than three, maybe four, tight ends. With MyCole Pruitt injured, the Steelers have tight end Rodney Williams on the active roster. There's no feasible reason as to why Williams would ever see elevated playing time or why he should remain on the roster in the first place.

Freiermuth is the team's top tight end. They paid him this offseason and he's the top talent on the team. Darnell Washington is the massive tight end who has the ability to make spectacular players. Connor Heyward is the gadget guy who performs well in a bunch of different roles.

There's just no place for Williams. This roster spot could be filled with a much more important position like edge depth or wide receiver depth.

2. WR Scotty Miller

If the Steelers have one major need this season, it would be at wide receiver. Pittsburgh has George Pickens and a rag-tag group of pass catchers behind him. Calvin Austin, Van Jefferson and Scotty Miller make up the group of wideouts behind Pickens. So, the Steelers could and should be in the market to acquire one or two pass catchers this season. Pair that with an elevated role for rookie Roman Wilson and there will be an odd man out.

The odd man out in this situation would be the veteran Scotty Miller.

Obviously, Pickens, Austin, Wilson and any trade acquisition would be safe on the roster. Van Jefferson would likely still remain over Miller on the team. But the Steelers would need to drop a wide receiver in order to acquire one or two wideouts.

Miller, 27, has two catches for 31 yards on the season. His best professional season saw him hit for 501 yards through the air on 33 catches with Tom Brady at QB. Miller is a fringe roster player, at best, and if the Steelers opt to improve their wide receiver room, he will find his way off the roster in the coming weeks.

1. QB Kyle Allen

Kyle Allen has been rostered for the last few weeks because of the injury to Russell Wilson. Allen has been a backup for most of his NFL career, landing with the Steelers as their third-string QB this season.

Now that Wilson is healthy and set to be active, the Steelers have no place for Allen on the active roster. Teams typically carry two quarterbacks, not three. This is especially the case when a team relies so heavily on their defense. The Steelers will need to use as many of their roster spots on defensive players as they can because they rely so heavily on defense.

There was some speculation that the Steelers could trade Russell Wilson earlier this year. These rumors emerged as some teams were very desperate for QB help, including the Miami Dolphins. But, with Wilson active and ready to compete for the starting job, there's just no way that Pittsburgh even considers moving him. This would have cleared a spot for Allen to serve as the backup, but with that idea off the table, Allen is set to end up off the roster.

This one shouldn't come as a surprise. The only chance the Steelers hold onto Allen is if they decide on three QBs for the roster, which is very unlikely.