5 Players Who Might Find Themselves on Pittsburgh Steelers' Practice Squad

We're two months away from the Pittsburgh Steelers making final decisions about their 53-man roster for 2015, as well as determining the players who will make up their practice squad this year. And the intervening two months will be major ones when it comes to making these assessments.

Padded practices and five preseason games will help sort the roster out from top to bottom. But even this far out from the Steelers' decision day, it's not too early to make a few educated guesses about players who could be best suited to join the practice squad.

Here are five Steelers who could land on the practice squad later this summer.

Steelers outside linebackers coach Joey Porter was excited when the team drafted Anthony Chickillo in Round 6. He told Steelers.com, "I think he adds depth to our pass rush situation. You can never have enough pass rushers in the way the game is being played now from the outside linebacker position. I think he's going to add a lot of depth to us."

The problem, though, is that Chickillo isn't a natural pass-rusher. Steelers Depot's Jon Ledyard took a look at his pass-rushing snaps in college at Miami and came away with the impression that "he's simply just a guy at the college level," adding that "there just isn't any explosiveness, lateral agility, physical traits or bend to get excited about when watching him off the edge."

Ledyard notes in another analysis that Chickillo is a much better run defender, and that's something the Steelers also need help with this year. But as an outside linebacker, he needs work on his technique before he can make an on-field impact, especially with the coaching staff pegging him as a pass-rusher. Because of this, he seems like the perfect practice squad candidate for this year.

Former Auburn center Reese Dismukes is listed on the roster as a guard, and that's not the only thing working against him when it comes to making the 53-man roster in September. There's also the matter of center B.J. Finney, who can also play guard, as well as guard-center hybrids Cody Wallace and Collin Rahrig. 

Further, the Steelers are set at present at starting guard, with Ramon Foster and David DeCastro entrenched at those positions this year. Chris Hubbard also provides depth on the line at guard, while Mike Adams handles backup duties for the two tackles.

Though Dismukes is a promising player (it was surprising that he went undrafted) and can handle multiple positions—something coaches love out of their offensive linemen—he's not the only swing guard on the roster. And others, like Hubbard and Wallace, already have NFL experience.

It might be risky to put Dismukes on the practice squad, as that opens him to poaching by other teams. But the way the depth chart on the offensive line appears to be shaking out puts him off the team entirely or on the practice squad. And for the Steelers' purposes, the latter is far preferable.

It's almost a toss-up between undrafted rookie running backs Cameron Stingily and Ross Scheuerman when it comes to who makes the 53-man roster and who ends up on the practice squad. But because Scheuerman has shades of Le'Veon Bell to his game—he can not only run but catch and is making improvements as a blocker—it's Stingily who gets the practice squad nod here.

Steelers Depot's Matthew Marczi describes him as "a big, powerful, but lumbering back," one who is larger and taller than fellow Steelers back Josh Harris but otherwise similarly built. He rushed for 971 yards and 14 touchdowns last year and averaged five yards per carry, but he doesn't have much experience as a receiver, totaling nine collegiate receptions and only two in 2014.

Much like Harris, Stingily would benefit from a 2015 season on the practice squad. That does not preclude him from being called up at any time—much as Harris was last year after the team released LeGarrette Blount. Stingily also has upside. But because he immediately brings less to the table than fellow rookie Scheuerman, he seems more likely to spend a year with the practice squad.

L.T. Walton, a Steelers' sixth-round pick in the 2015 draft, is one of the team's most intriguing rookies. But intriguing doesn't always translate to NFL-ready. And because he has a number of rough edges that need polishing, it wouldn't be surprising if he spent the year on the practice squad rather than the 53-man roster.

Walton is a former offensive lineman, but he's also a former basketball and baseball player, which has helped contribute to his considerable athleticism. Still, as Behind the Steel Curtain's Jeff Hartman points out, "Walton struggles against double-teams" and though he "has the measurables to be a player in the NFL...his technique still leaves a lot to be desired."

That's something defensive line coach John Mitchell also pointed out earlier this month. He told PennLive's Jacob Klinger, "Right now he's doing a pretty good job, but he's making mental mistakes and mental mistakes will get you beat on Sunday." 

The Steelers envision Walton as a defensive end; however, that position is a crowded one, with Stephon Tuitt and Cameron Heyward likely locking down the starting jobs and Cam Thomas (if he's not cut this summer), Clifton Geathers and Joe Kruger providing depth. And Walton still has a lot of learning to do. If he cannot get fully up to speed by the time training camp and the preseason wrap up, Walton will spend 2015 on the practice squad.

It's not that fourth-round 2015 draft pick Doran Grant isn't talented. In fact, he is; Beyond the Steel Curtain's Jeff Hartman noted in his film study that "Grant is a great tackler and does his part in run support."

But there are areas that could use improvement, particularly his coverage abilities. Said Hartman, "Grant as a coverage corner is not quite ready for NFL receivers yet. He is by no stretch of the imagination a lost cause, but when it comes to refined skills he certainly is lacking behind draft classmate [Senquez] Golson in many areas."

And when a cornerback needs refinement in coverage, it's a sign that the practice squad could be a good place for him. It doesn't help his cause that the Steelers aren't hard up for cornerbacks either, with fellow rookie Golson joining veterans William Gay, Cortez Allen, Antwon Blake and up-and-comers Kevin Fogg and B.W. Webb.

Typically, a cornerback like Grant could reach the 53-man roster by being proficient in special teams. But because the Steelers have so many corners ahead of Grant on the depth chart, they may not want to use six or seven roster spots on the position when they could better use that space to bolster another position.

It's possible, once the pads come on, that Grant distinguishes himself enough to warrant making the 53-man roster. But odds are against him this year, just based on the numbers. But that's fine—he could easily crack the starting lineup in a year's time with improved instincts in coverage.