Sleepers Sliding In, and Out of, the Steelers 53-Man Roster

Next Saturday, the Steelers will have their roster trimmed from 80 to 53, with sleepers finding their way in and out of the Week 1 team.

PITTSBURGH -- One week and six days from now, the Steelers take the field at MetLife Stadium to play the New York Giants in a very strange, but happening, NFL season.

Before then, they need to cut 80 players down to 53. Extended rules for practice squads make keeping veterans off the roster a little easier. Which means taking a chance on guys who might typically find themselves inactive on Sundays, comes with more comfort in 2020.

If the Steelers want their best team on the sideline, they don't want the most experienced group of players. Signing Wendell Smallwood and Jayrone Elliott doesn't mean they're required to keep them on the roster if they want them to be safety nets.

Leaving room for these names to slide into the 53-man team.

Sleepers Sliding In

Marcus Allen

Allen is an easy one. Everyone keeps talking about him and his move to inside linebacker. Even if he's getting burnt at practice from the first team more times than not, he's still flashy enough to want around as a maybe.

Devin Bush, Vince Williams, and Ulysees Gilbert are pretty locked into the first three inside linebackers. Robert Spillane and Allen will compete for the final spot.

Allen brings versatility that seems to have everyone excited. Inside linebackers coach Jerry Olsavsky said on Monday that "If you like playing football, how much do you like hitting people? Marcus likes hitting people, so playing linebacker is no problem for him."

Which rings true.

Allen came to Pittsburgh as a tackler. He's never had the best coverage skills, but might be able to pick those up playing closer to the line of scrimmage.

What he will do, is run head-first into a running back believing he's going to take him down.

Mike Tomlin has enjoyed watching him, Olsavsky is thrilled to have him in his position room, and if he keeps playing with high energy, he'll sneak his way onto the roster.

Henry Mondeaux

Dan McCullers made some impressive goal-line stands on Monday, according to the pool report. The big man is entering his seventh season with the Steelers and might finally have a place in the defense.

Tyson Alualu will take over the starting job, and Isaiah Buggs appears to be the first man up for the backup behind Chris Wormley.

Mondeaux is right there, though. Throughout camp, he's made plays and shown his progression. The 2019 undrafted rookie spent last season on the practice squad and is now catching his coaches' eye.

It feels like every other day you see his name on the pool report for doing something positive. Keith Butler said he has defensive ends he won't name because he wants them to stay low-key.

Mondeaux is my first guess at who those unmentioned names are. And working at both defensive end and nose tackle gives him an advantage.

A player for depth that can play across the defensive line is exactly what the Steelers want. Make him a second-year player who's coming along nicely, and it's hard to sneak Mondeaux past anyone this summer.

Ray-Ray McCloud

Since coming to Pittsburgh, McCloud has been more than anyone expected. The speedy return man is making plays on offense and giving Ryan Switzer a run for his money in special teams.

McCloud hasn't even been here for two weeks yet and is already impressing everyone at training camp. He's forcing players like Minkah Fitzpatrick to work "overtime," as the pool report put it, and showing his explosiveness in his route running.

At the same time, he has the highest hill to climb when it comes to making the 53-man roster.

McCloud will have to prove to the coaching staff that he's worth a sixth wide receiver spot. It's not impossible, or something the Steelers wouldn't consider, but it is a challenge.

His best bet is showing his worth in kick return. Switzer continues to be the first player on punt returns, but McCloud has a history of flashiness in the kick return game.

Right now, he needs to keep doing what he's doing. He's playing well. Maybe it's the reconnection with former Clemson teammate Deon Cane, but there's a spark when he's on the field.

Sleepers Sliding Out

Antoine Brooks Jr.

I was someone who believed Brooks was going to play the role Marcus Allen is filling. The bigger safety who can play a hybrid safety position behind Fitzpatrick and Terrell Edmunds.

It's not that Brooks hasn't proven himself. It's just that he looks like a late-round rookie.

So far, he's dealt with an injury and had to deal with the team signing a veteran in Curtis Riley. When they moved Allen to inside linebacker, they basically said Brooks is going to play behind Edmunds this season, which is hard to do when Riley and Jordan Dangerfield are also on the team.

Brooks didn't seem to do enough early for the team to feel comfortable moving forward with him as the primary backup. It's not unexpected, but an impact he could've made more substantial for the team to lean on him.

Now, it's more of a waiting game to see how Riley and Dangerfield play during the season. Brooks will still be highly considered for an active spot throughout the year, and maybe even by next Saturday. But right now, it's not looking good.

Kevin Rader

At one point this camp, Rader was my sleeper to overtake Zach Gentry for the third tight end position. It wasn't anything Rader was doing; it was more of what Gentry wasn't.

Gentry was not playing to his standards as a fifth-round draft pick early in camp. His coaches were making comments about how any tight end can sneak up and take the final spot, and the team went out and signed Dax Raymond.

Raymond is gone because of an injury, the new signing Kyle Markway has looked three steps slower than anyone else on the field, and it's coming down to Rader and Gentry for the final spot.

The problem is that once it became the two of them, Gentry took off.

Rader is playing to his talent level, which is reliable for an inactive player. He's going to make your team better on the practice field and compete to see Sundays from time to time.

Gentry is playing like a draft pick. And unfortunately, it's costing Rader a real chance at making the team for Week 1. 

Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.