3 Forgotten Players on Steelers Roster

For as important the stars on the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster will be to the team's overall success in 2026, the more unheralded players will handle sizable roles as well.

The Steelers have done a good job of building up depth across the board, and they have a handful of names that fit that bill who have become overlooked.

With that, here are three players on Pittsburgh's roster that are forgotten but could have an influence on how this upcoming season transpires.

Brock Hoffman

Any hype surrounding Hoffman upon his arrival to Pittsburgh on a one-year deal worth $2.5 million in free agency has died down a bit now that Spencer Anderson appears to be the clear favorite to win the starting job at right guard.

Even if Hoffman can't make up the necessary ground to usurp Anderson, he's still a valuable backup with positional flexibility who could find himself with opportunities to play this season.

Of Hoffman's 474 offensive snaps in 2025, according to Pro Football Focus, 419 came at center while the rest (55) were spent at left guard. In 2024, Hoffman finished with 387 snaps at right guard, 109 at center and 19 at left guard as a member of the Dallas Cowboys under Mike McCarthy. During 2023, he had 156 snaps at center and 65 at right guard.

Hoffman has also allowed just 23 pressures during his career, and with the knowledge that an injury or two will likely pop up along the interior of the Steelers' offensive line, having him on the roster helps safeguard against such an outcome.

Brandin Echols

Arriving with little fanfare last March on a two-year, $6 million contract in free agency, Echols became a crucial piece of Pittsburgh's secondary whose inside-out versatility proved to be a blessing.

He finished the 2025 campaign with 523 defensive snaps, 321 of which came in the slot while 146 were spent on the boundary, per PFF. Over that span, Echols hauled in two interceptions to go alongside a sack and forced fumble.

Reps will be a little harder to come by at cornerback now that Jamel Dean and rookie Daylen Everette are in the fold while Jalen Ramsey is expected to serve as the Steelers' primary option in the slot.

Ramsey should still play safety at a considerable rate in certain packages, though, and because Patrick Graham will likely have five defensive backs on the field more often than not, Echols is a fantastic depth piece to have who has also gone overlooked this offseason.

Logan Lee

The fight for Pittsburgh's final roster spots along the interior of the defensive line will be fierce.

Cameron Heyward, Derrick Harmon, Keeanu Benton, Sebastian Joseph-Day and Yahya Black are all locks, leaving one or two slots up for grabs between Esezi Otomewo, Dean Lowry, Gabriel Rubio and Lee.

Otomewo was productive over a small sample size last year, Lowry has prior experience playing both for the Steelers and McCarthy and the organization used a sixth-round pick on Rubio in the 2026 NFL Draft, meaning there's a real case for all of them to ultimately crack the roster.

Lee's name has flown under-the-radar within that conversation, however. The 2024 sixth-rounder missed his entire rookie season due to a calf injury, and upon his return last year, he logged just 47 defensive snaps across seven contests.

He made an impact when he saw the field, though, posting three pressures over 24 pass rush reps with a 40 percent win rate and two batted passes.

Perhaps Lee has some untapped potential, and he's worth keeping an eye on once training camp and the preseason arrive.

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