ELANDON ROBERTS
Inside Linebacker
The Steelers have remade their group of inside linebackers, with the top three players all being veterans signed as unrestricted free agents. It remains to be seen how the Steelers will utilize and deploy Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, and Kwon Alexander, because each individual has a different skill-set, and each individual also could end up with "green dot" responsibility , which means he would be the player receiving the defensive play-call from the sideline and then be responsible for communicating it to the rest of the players on the field.
In the 24-0 win in Atlanta that allowed the Steelers to finish with a perfect 3-0 preseason, Roberts looked to be up to all aspects of the task. He had three tackles, including 1 tackle for loss vs. the run and 1 sack, as well as handling a share of the "green dot" responsibilities. Roberts is the Steelers Digest Player of the Week.
Also considered were Kenny Pickett, who played two series and drove the offense to touchdowns on both of those, and completed 4-for-4 for 86 yards, with no touchdowns, no interceptions, and a rating of 118.8; running back Anthony McFarland, who rushed for 55 yards on 10 carries and scored a touchdown; outside linebacker Nick Herbig, who had three tackles and a sack to finish the preseason with 3.5 sacks in three games; inside linebacker Mark Robinson, who had 4 tackles and a forced fumble; and Calvin Austin III, who returned 4 punts for 53 yards (13.3 average), with his 21-yard return setting up the second touchdown drive and his 14-yard return setting up the first field goal drive.
