When it comes to last few spots on roster, special teams rule
Several players the Steelers have cut since the end of training camp have landed on 53-man rosters in other NFL cities. When this happens, it leads to all sorts of hand-wringing among the fan base.
It’s understandable to a degree. Fans follow the development of these players for months from the time they are drafted or signed. They are introduced at rookie minicamp and tidbits on their progress are chronicled in OTAs, minicamp, training camp and the
preseason games.
Their teammates rave about them, sometimes even their coaches. Take Tuzar Skipper, for example. He was a camp phenom with five sacks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in four preseason games.
That splash on defense was enough for him to initially make the 53-man roster out of training camp, but he lost his spot when the Steelers promoted receiver Johnny Holton from the practice squad the day before the season opener in New England.
The Steelers were hoping Skipper would sneak through waivers and that he could be re-signed to the practice squad the following week. But the Giants claimed him and have played him in five games this season.
Skipper plays about eight snaps per game for the Giants. He has a half sack, two tackles and a fumble recovery. He’s also played 23 snaps on special teams.
Steelers fans frequently email Post-Gazette beat writers and keep us to up to date on Skipper’s games with the Giants, as well as others that were claimed. They complain about Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert letting go a player that could possibly provide depth at a position of need, and they often point out how the Steelers will be desperate for a starting outside linebacker next season when Bud Dupree likely signs with another team as an unrestricted free agent.
So why did Colbert and coach Mike Tomlin deem Holton more deserving of a roster spot?
The answer: special teams.
Holton has climbed in the receiver rotation due to injuries in recent weeks, but he’s on the team for his special teams abilities. He plays more than half of all special teams snaps (54.3%). He’s a gunner on the punt coverage unit, and he’s the player who downed Jordan Berry’s punt at the Chargers’ 1-yard line with 1:11 remaining in the Steelers’ 2417 in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
Holton doesn’t have a catch this season on offense, but he helped the Steelers win a game with a big special teams play. It might have been difficult to justify Holton’s spot on the roster for the first five weeks of the season, but that is exactly the type of play that explains their decision to have him on the team.
Skipper, it should be pointed out, had a difficult time making an impression on special teams during his time with the Steelers. He was practically begging for an opportunity to play on special teams two days before the final preseason game against the Panthers.
“I have no clue,” Skipper said on why he hadn’t played on special teams in the first three preseason games. “I don’t know. I’m pushing to be on special teams. I want to be on special teams. I can be on special teams.”
Skipper finally did get a few special teams reps against the Panthers, but it apparently wasn’t enough to make the Steelers keep him when they had to make a decision on the final roster spot for the New England game.
The most recent Steelers player to be claimed on waivers after being cut is offensive lineman Fred Johnson, an undrafted rookie free agent out of Florida. He came out of nowhere to make the 53-man roster after a strong training camp and preseason.
The Bengals, who are desperate for offensive linemen, claimed him. The Steelers deactivated Johnson for the first five games of the season, so they deemed him expendable even though they liked his potential to be a contributor in a group of aging linemen that are closer to retirement than their prime.
“That’s the nature of the business,” offensive line coach Shaun Sarrett said. “It’s going to happen. There’s limited quality linemen in the NFL, so it’s our job to get a lineman and develop him. We don’t put our heads down when we lose a guy like that. We just look at the next one and say ‘Well, we’re going to get this one and develop him.’ ”
Why not cut backup safety Jordan Dangerfield? Or receiver Donte Moncrief? The Steelers have to decide in another month if they want to keep Moncrief and his bloated salary or cut him in an effort to secure a thirdround compensatory pick in next year’s draft.
Again, the answer is their usefulness on game days. Johnson wasn’t dressing. Dangerfield, even though he never plays on defense, is a core special-teams player. He’s played 110 snaps on special teams, or more than twothirds of all special-teams snaps.
Moncrief only caught one pass against the Chargers, but it was a diving catch on third down that moved the chains in a close game.
Even when they’re in the midst of a losing season, the Steelers always try to win games. That means keeping special teams player that will never play in any other capacity being kept over others that might someday become useful players on offense or defense.
Another one who got away is receiver/return specialist Diontae Spencer, who was cut at the end of camp in favor of Ryan Switzer. The Broncos signed him to their 53-man roster, and he’s been among the top punt returners in the league.
Spencer is 11th in the league in punt-return average. On 13 attempts he has 118 yards, including a 42yard return. He also has one kickoff return for 60 yards. He barely plays on offense.
Switzer, meanwhile, has five punt returns for 28 yards and five kickoff returns for 26 yards, for substantially lower averages than Spencer.
The Steelers kept Switzer because he’s sure-handed in the return game and because he had a track record with the team as a receiver last season when he caught 36 passes. He’s been much less effective as a receiver this season, but that might have more to do with Ben Roethlisberger’s absence rather than any steep decline in skill. Roethlisberger and Switzer developed chemistry in their only season together, and he gained the quarterback’s trust.
Whether fans like it or not, all of it matters when it comes to roster composition.