Even though Mike Tomlin remained as ambiguous as ever in his answers for the most part today, he didn’t leave anything open to interpretation when it came to answering questions about Steve McLendon.
Q: Where is Steve right now? Has he proven that he can play nose?
MT: Yes he has.
Q: If you have to line up with McLendon at nose tackle, you’re comfortable?
MT: Certainly.
Q: Is McLendon an option to play in sub-packages?
MT: He is. He is.
The 28 year old defensive lineman saw just over 30% of all defensive snaps last year. That number was lower than it would have been had he not been limited or sidelined by injuries at times during the season. Aside from that, he came off the field in certain situations, and specifically when the Steelers ran sub-packages.
After going undrafted in 2009, and playing behind Chris Hoke for the first couple years on the roster, McLendon signed a 3 year, $7.25 million contract with the team last offseason, and carries a 2014 cap number of $2,983,333. While the Steelers traditionally pull their nose in Nickel and Dime situations, we may see a lot less of that in 2014.
Another player who could move around the line depending on the situation is Cam Thomas, the former Chargers NT the Steelers signed in March. Thomas played roughly half of the Chargers defensive snaps last year. When he was signed, the team said he was signed as a defensive end, though, with his extensive experience at nose tackle, it’s hard to imagine he’d play exclusively at defensive end. When coach Tomlin was asked about Thomas today, he made note of his position flexibility.
Q: Are you in a wait and see mode with Cam Thomas? Play him at different spots and see where he’s best?
MT: Certainly, you know, obviously he’s nose capable, he’s end capable. It’s about not only playing to his talents, but also the talents of the men we already have, to find the strongest combination that will give us an opportunity to play great defense. It may change from situation to situation. I think his position flexibility will aid in that, along with the flexibility of guys like Steve and others.
The possible return of Brett Keisel was also brought up, and as you’d expect, Tomlin didn’t close the door on his return.
Q: Where do you stand with Brett Keisel? Depending on how things go with the draft, is there a chance he could rejoin you for camp?
MT: The door’s not closed to anyone on the free agent market.
Lastly, Tomlin acknowledged that the defensive line was a work in progress, but added that the team expects contributions from some new faces.
Q: With 3 going out and 1 coming in on the d-line, how’s that position in terms of where you need to be?
MT: We’re not done in that area. We’ve got some young people here that will work and we don’t expect them to be the same as they have been. We expect improvement with some of the young people working here like Arnfelt and N. Williams.