The Pittsburgh Steelers have largely finished filling their offseason roster, adding 10 draft picks, six undrafted free agents, and a few veteran reinforcements to fill out the 90-man squad. Now Omar Khan’s attention shifts from acquiring talent to sorting through it starting this weekend with rookie minicamp. How many members of the Steelers’ 2026 draft class will survive the final cuts?

This first iteration is the time for bold predictions when we have very little information to work with. You’ll notice a couple surprises in mine. Here’s an early prediction of Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster.

Offense – 25

Quarterbacks (3) – Aaron Rodgers, Will Howard, Drew Allar

Analysis: Rodgers hasn’t signed, but the assumption has been all along that he eventually will. If he does, Mason Rudolph is as good at gone. I suppose they could stash him on the practice squad, if he’s agreeable, to have at least one veteran with starting experience. Allar is a lock, and it would be a shock if the Steelers move on from Howard after they gassed him up all offseason.

Running Backs (4) – Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Travis Homer, Riley Nowakowski (FB)

Analysis: Kaleb Johnson was drafted for Arthur Smith’s wide-zone scheme, and Smith is gone. Where will his opportunity come with Dowdle and Warren both on the roster through 2027? Johnson also serves no purpose on special teams. It’s hard to move on from a third-round pick so soon, but how do you keep him on the roster while being mindful of special teams? Homer is too important in that area as a four-unit player who can serve as a personal protector on the punt unit.

Wide Receivers (6) – DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Ben Skowronek, Kaden Wetjen, Eli Heidenreich

Analysis: Going out on a limb here with another surprise cut of former third-round pick Roman Wilson. He was lapped on the depth chart by Marquez Valdes-Scantling late last season and Aaron Rodgers clearly didn’t trust Wilson. If Rodgers is back, Wilson is due for another year of not getting a helmet on game day. He provides nothing on special teams, so it’s hard to justify his spot. Heidenreich makes it as the team’s final seventh-round pick because he can play RB and WR (he’s listed as both on its official roster) and a whole lot of special teams. Wetjen and Heidenreich give them multiple slot options to experiment with.

Tight Ends (3) – Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Jaheim Bell

Analysis: Freiermuth and Washington are locks, but the third tight end should be one of the more interesting spots on the roster this year. The team lists Nowakowski as a fullback, though he can play both. Jaheim Bell is another versatile option who can play TE, fullback, and H-back. McCarthy’s favorite word seems to be versatility, so Bell makes sense here.

Offensive Tackles (3) – Troy Fautanu, Max Iheanachor, Dylan Cook

Analysis: Broderick Jones may contribute in 2026, but I am predicting him to start the season on the PUP list after reports of a setback with his neck injury. Fautanu, Iheanachor, and Cook are no-brainers, but will the Steelers keep a fourth pure tackle? Spencer Anderson, Gennings Dunker, and maybe even Steven Jones can play the position in a pinch, so I’ll stick with three. This would presumably go back to four if/when Jones is healthy.

Interior Offensive Linemen (6) – Zach Frazier, Mason McCormick, Gennings Dunker, Brock Hoffman, Spencer Anderson, Ryan McCollum

Analysis: Frazier, McCormick, and Dunker are set in stone. Anderson and Hoffman provide experience and familiarity with a chance to win the Week 1 starting LG job. McCollum has been solid as Frazier’s backup when needed.

Defense – 25

Defensive Ends (5) – Cameron Heyward, Derrick Harmon, Yahya Black, Esezi Otomewo, Kevin Jobity Jr.

Analysis: I have Rubio as the only draft pick not to make the 53-man roster. Otomewo was solid in limited action and has experience with the rest of the group. The last spot comes down to Rubio, Jobity, and Logan Lee. Jobity offers a little more pass-rush upside and could flash enough in camp to win a spot at the back of the depth chart.

Nose Tackles (2) – Keeanu Benton, Sebastian Joseph-Day

Analysis: Both are virtual locks and should play a large number of snaps in this defense.

Outside Linebackers (4) – T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig, Jack Sawyer

Analysis: Nothing should change here from last year. It’s one of the deepest and most talented position groups on the entire roster.

Inside Linebackers (5) – Patrick Queen, Payton Wilson, Cole Holcomb, Carson Bruener, Brandon George

Analysis: Let’s include a rookie minicamp tryout player. One or two usually make the 90-man roster, and it’s not unheard of for them to also make the initial 53. George is one of the most athletic linebackers to come out of the draft in a long time. And unlike most athletic linebackers, you don’t have to sacrifice size with him standing 6032 and weighing 246 pounds. He went undrafted and was impressing in Kansas City last year before an injury derailed his rookie season. Malik Harrison was signed to be a force in the run game, but he didn’t do that very well last year. To me, he’s expendable. Bruener is a core special teamer and should be considered darn near a lock for the initial 53-man roster because of it.

Cornerbacks (5) – Joey Porter Jr., Jamel Dean, Brandin Echols, Daylen Everette, Asante Samuel Jr.

Analysis: With the addition of third-round rookie Daylen Everette, fringe guys like Cory Trice Jr. and Donte Kent should have a hard time making the roster given their extensive injury histories.

Safeties (4) – Jalen Ramsey, DeShon Elliott, Jaquan Brisker, Robert Spears-Jennings

Analysis: The top three should be considered locks, which leaves an intriguing battle between Spears-Jennings and Sebastian Castro. The upside on defense is higher for the rookie, and I think he offers enough on special teams to edge out Castro, especially with other special teams guys like Homer, Bruener, Skowronek, and Sawyer already on the roster.

Special Teams – 3

Kicker (1) – Chris Boswell

Analysis: Boswell should soon sign an extension that makes him the league’s most expensive kicker. And it’s well-deserved. This one is obvious.

Punter (1) – Cameron Johnston

Analysis: Pittsburgh’s rookie minicamp roster includes three punters, so this isn’t a shoo-in. But Johnston is the clear favorite if he can stay healthy after back-to-back injury-plagued seasons at 34 years old.

Long Snapper (1) – Christian Kuntz

Analysis: Pittsburgh has always given Kuntz competition, and this year is no different. But he is under contract through 2026 and should keep his job for at least one more season.

It’s been one year since the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General brought charges against former Pittsburgh-area funeral home owner Patrick Vereb. He’s accused of deceiving more than 6,500 pet owners and denying them promised burial services.

State Sen. Nick Pisciottano of West Mifflin says critical legislation isn’t moving along like it should, so he’s asking pet owners to get on social media and call their state senators.

“We’re never going to be able to go back in time and make those things not happen for folks, but we do have the opportunity here, now that we’ve identified this gap in state law, to make sure that there are proper safeguards in place so that this never happens again in the future,” Pisciottano said. 

Investigators said nearly 6,500 pets were promised a proper burial by Vereb, but instead their bodies were dumped in landfills or left in leaking garbage bags. 

Pisciottano says legislation is needed to make sure that never happens again, which is why he sent out a letter, encouraging people “harmed by the lack of oversight in this industry” to get loud again. 

“In Harrisburg, this bill passed unanimously in the state House, 203 representatives all voted for it. I don’t think that it’s a partisan issue, or an issue where there’s two sides that are for and against, and so we got to make sure this bill is high enough on the priority list of enough senators so that we can move this legislation forward.” 

Both the House bill and the Senate bill remain stalled in the Senate, awaiting any movement. They hope to increase transparency in pet cremation bookkeeping and require providers to detail services and certify the return of cremated remains, among many other things. But until either bill gets considered, it can’t go up for any sort of vote.

“So if it doesn’t get done by the end of November, it has to start all over, so we would have to reintroduce in the House, reintroduce in the Senate, it would have to pass through the House again, it would still have to pass through the Senate,” Pisciottano said. “And so, our argument is, if there’s no opposition, and we’re halfway to the finish line, why can’t we just get it done this year?” 

Pet parent Megan Lindeman is forever thinking about what happened to her Persian cat, Rory. She says the trust is broken and this legislation will help restore it. 

“It passed unanimously in the House and to have it not go anywhere at this point is incredibly frustrating,” Lindeman said. 

She said families who were grieving were taken advantage of, and there needs to be accountability, “so that we can restore trust and transparency.”

Pet parents are encouraged to call their senators and ask them to take this legislation up for a vote. KDKA reached out to Sen. Joe Pittman, who controls the schedule for the floor, to ask if he plans to bring it up for a vote, but didn’t hear back.