How many NFL players actually make a difference on a roster?

A team has to have a good all around roster. The Steelers have shown that when they have inadequate talent at certain positions the team suffers. 2016-18, the offense was stacked, but the defense had secondary issues at cornerback, linebacker, and safety. By 2019, the cornerback and linebacker positions were fixed, but the safety position still left the defense average, until Fitzpatrick was acquired, but it was too late to salvage the season because the QB was injured.

Here is my list of what an NFL roster needs:
QB - 2 - A great starter and a serviceable back-up. The Steelers have competed with back-up QBs, but they have not had a consistently good back up quarterback. (Currently the jury is out on the Steelers #2).

WRs- 4 - At least in today's NFL. (The Steelers have 4).

TE - 2 - A good starter and a serviceable back-up. The 3rd TE needs to not be too big of drop from the #2 TE. (The Steelers #3 TE needs to prove himself).

OL - 7 - solid players (Either Banner or Okafor have to step up, and Wis or Dotson need to prove it on the field).

RB - 2 - but can be done by committee. Steelers have bodies; can they stay healthy? Can the o-line help establish an adequate running game?

DL - 5 - (The Steelers have 4 in Heyward, Tuitt, Alalu, and Wormley).

OLB - 3, possibly 4 - (The Steelers have 2 for sure, but depth needs to prove itself).

ILB - 3 (The Steelers have 2, but depth needs to prove itself).

CB - 4 (The Steelers may be solid at CB for now).

S - 4 (The Steelers have 2, some fans will still say only one).

K - 1 (Hopefully Boswell makes 2018 a fluke).

P - 1 (Hopefully there is an upgrade from Berry).

ST- ?

By my count the Steelers have about 30 of 40 players that are needed, including Derek Watt). I realize the other players that make the 53, soon to be 55, man roster are important, but 7 of those guys do not even dress each Sunday. The depth at o-line, d-line, LBs and S, if called upon, will determine how well the Steelers season will go. Hopefully, if Rudolph is called on again, or whoever wins the #2 QB spot, the results will be better this time around.

 

Shazier going down kinda set us back in 2017. I think we had a good shot with him that season. Certain players like him or say Minkah makes the biggest difference imo. That said we had nothing behind him at ilb.


Edit: we had Fort but Tomlin went with the guy off the couch.

 

I’m going with 53

 

Then the Steelers have a lot of question marks that need to be answered.

 

I'm still worried about the second ILB position. We have always been at our best with two good ones. I hope UG3 steps up. Vince isn't mobile enough so it limits us and will put far too much pressure on Bush to have to do more then he might be capable of handling in year two.

D-line I am not concerned about. There are ways to play NT besides parking a cat guy in the middle. QUickness, strength, stunts. Buggs should be added to the ops list he didn't play a lot but played well when he did. We should be fine.

I think layne will see the field some this year. I'm expecting things to slow down for him. He has some talent that could be useful down the line. We have a couple of spots that could be up for grabs in the secondary. We have a couple of guys that could surprise us.

o-line - we have quietly added some talent for the future.

I think we are 6-7 deep at wr.

 

Every team wants this

 

There's a salary cap and you can't be strong at every position, and every backup position...I mean , what team wouldn't...But it's not possible to have a perfect team like you describe

 

The better teams are closer to the number than the Steelers currently. I hope Highsmith, Gilbert, some of the players that have been around for a couple years, and the draft picks, start filling some of the voids. A healthy Ben hides some of the teams weaknesses.

 

The better teams are, that's why they're better...Simple as that...Ben Takes up so much of the salary cap that, you have to get scraps at some depth positions...

That's why KC's window could be closing...A young great QB making 800k is gonna be alot different than a great young QB making 40+ million a year... We'll see how they fit all those weapons in, When there's a 40 million dollar difference at one position

 

Yes Bens giant salary has a knock on effect on the bottom half of the roster. They are a bit top heavy anyway with a lot of guys earning big bucks, Pouncey, Heyward, Tuitt, Haden, Decastro and Dupree all earning over or near $10m. You have to draft really well for depth in that situation.

KC and the Ravens will be looking at extensions for their superstar QB’s soon and that will start to turn the screw on their salary caps. A great QB on their rookie deal is the most valuable asset you can have on an NFL roster right now.

 

You can throw all this out the window when it come to injuries!!! You can have the best 53 man roster in week 1 and see your season end in week 17 because of injuries!

Does KC win the Superbowl last year if Mahomes goes down in week 2 like Ben did?

Would we have gone to the Superbowl if Shazier does not get injured in 2017?

Does not matter how stacked your roster is at the start of the season; if the injury Gods come knocking your screwed!

 

Philly won with a backup.

 

Someone finally outsmarted dark hoodie.

 

I hope you are not suggesting Shazier's injury may have cost us a SB. He wasn't THAT great Good, not great. Still remember people saying our defense was still suffering 2 yrs after his injury. Lambert wasn't even that good. I do miss him and wish he could come back and pair up with our thin LB corps. Otherwise, your comment on injuries is reality and no one can truly be prepared for the unknown.

 

Patriots have proven a solid unit of lesser skilled players all on the same page beats a team with 4-5 super talented players. We get as far as we do off talent/brotherhood/unity. I think these players really like each other and the organization. You see players leave all the time and still talking to each other on social media. They just don't put in that same work into the X and O's. That's the difference in these teams and 06 and 09. They had unity but also really wanted to win and they put in that extra work.

You see some players get motivated here and there but it's not a whole team thing. Like Heyward after he was gasssed in the 1st quarter against the Jags in playoffs. Nelson was motivated to play for his favorite team in the off-season and was on of our best corners. It's here and there thing never the whole team. Then we had players who wanted to be rappers. AB put in work but he's always doing it with the competition. One guy was more worried about playing video games.

 

Considering they have a 90 man roster, I’m going with 37.

 

at least

 

Sometimes it’s not who to cut but when to stop?

 

I will respectfully agree...... "all of them".

What you say about the Steelers is the case with every team in the NFL, always has been, and always will be.

It's impossible to build a perfect roster and if it ever happened, that team would win 19 games by 100-0 because they would stop the games.

 

I agree there is no perfect roster. But a team needs to consistently draft well to replenish the roster, which the Steelers have done in the Ben Roethlisberger era for the most part. I actually like what the team did this year in free agency and the draft, but the team can't afford to miss on the Jarvis Jones', Artie Burns', etc. When the team reaches for a position, it has an affect on the whole roster.