The Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker group will be headed by starters Alex Highsmith and TJ Watt, of course. Genard Avery figured to be the primary backup, but he was cut in one of the more surprising off-season moves on Tuesday. For Derrek Tuszka and more specifically, newcomer Hamilcar Rashed Jr., that essentially locked them into spots on the 53-man roster.
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There's still a slight chance that one of them misses out, as Delontae Scott has been impressive at times in training camp, but it's unlikely. Rashed was signed just two weeks ago, and he has established himself in the black and gold quickly, as shown by his first-team reps on Monday. Watt and Rashed actually share something in common, which has helped for a more smooth transition to Pittsburgh's defense for the newcomer.
"He's got a good juice to him, plays the run well," Watt said via the Steelers' Twitter page. "He actually shares the same outside linebacker coach [Cort Dennsion] that I had in college, so we have that similarity. Just to be able to translate some things what we called in college, we call it here has been nice, but I think he has a good juice about him. [He has] a good pass rush package as well, and I think he can do some good things for us."
Watt played his college ball at Wisconsin, while Rashed played at Oregon State. Rashed played 16 defensive snaps for the New York Jets in his rookie season, as well as two more plays on special teams. Essentially, the two sharing the same OLB coach from college in Dennison, has helped the team's communication on defense when Rashed's been in. That likely helped him get those first-team reps on Monday as well.
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After going undrafted in 2021, he caught on with the Jets as one of the more underrated signings around the league. Watt is the latest to provide rave reviews for Rashed. It's looking more and more like Rashed will establish himself as the first guy off the bench at outside linebacker, behind Watt and Highsmith. Not only has he performed in practice, but it's translated into games. He's done well in the team's first two preseason games against the Seattle Seahawks and Jacksonville Jaguars. Perhaps most importantly, Rashed has shown an ability to stop the run, something the Steelers defense couldn't do in 2021.
What are your expectations for Rashed in his first season in black and gold? Can he become a main contributor/primary backup? What are you looking for this weekend in the team's last preseason game against the Detroit Lions? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!
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