The ‘big unknown’ with Steelers ILB Cole Holcomb

The Steelers will need to make a financial decision soon about Cole Holcomb.

Last season, the Pittsburgh Steelers completely rebuilt their inside linebacker depth chart starting with Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts. The team also added Kwon Alexander later in the season and the three of them brought a new level of play to the position until the injuries started to pile up.

Now it is the 2024 offseason and Alexander is a free agent and Alexander is coming off of a big injury and due a significant payday. This is why Steelers beat writer Ray Fittipaldo called the situation with Holcomb the big unknown.

 Holcomb is under contract. Alexander is a UFA. Omar Khan will address reporters at the combine a week from today so we might get an update on what they’re thinking at ILB. Holcomb declined to speak with reporters on locker cleanout day and Mike Tomlin offered very little about where he is in his rehab. So quite honestly, there is a big unknown there.

If the Steelers keep Holcomb, his cap hit for 2024 is $7.46 million. If the Steelers choose to release Holcomb as a post-June 1 cut would save the Steelers $6 million in cap space. If the Steelers release Holcomb, look for them to address the position early in free agency and possibly in the 2024 NFL draft as well.

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Steelers 2024 offseason roster – Linebacker

Here are all the Steelers linebackers currently on the roster heading into the offseason.

Last season the Pittsburgh Steelers had to deal with a mix of highs and lows from the linebacker position. At outside linebacker, T.J. Watt led the league in sacks but as inside linebacker, injuries rocked the depth chart.

Several former Tar Heels set to play in NFL Playoffs

There are six former UNC football players on NFL postseason rosters. Houston Texans right tackle Charlie Heck will be the only one starting.

Starting in just two days, there’ll be a lot of smiles and broken hearts.

No, we’re not talking about weddings and breakups. We’re talking about the NFL Playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers are looking to win their first Super Bowl since 1994, with 2024 their best chance to do so, thanks to a pair of MVP candidates in Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey.

The Cleveland Browns have defied all injury odds, winning four December games to put themselves in the AFC’s top Wild Card spot, by playing top-notch defense and bringing in Joe Flacco behind a banged-up offensive line.

UNC football fans should also be excited about the NFL postseason, with six former Tar Heels set to take the field. This should offer the Carolina faithful some much-needed relief, with the college campaign not ending so well.

You might want to know – which Tar Heels will be suiting up in pursuit of a Super Bowl? There’s one name you might be able to guess (former second overall pick), but you’ll have to read the full list below for more names.

Steelers host FA linebacker Tanner Vallejo

Pittsburgh is onthe hunt for another inside linebacker.

As the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare to call up one or more inside linebackers this week, the team is already looking for their replacements on the practice squad. According to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson, the Steelers brought in veteran linebacker Tanner Vallejo for a visit on Thursday.

Vallejo is a former sixth-round pick of the Buffalo Bills. He’s made the rounds having been on four different teams since 2017. His longest tenure has been with the Arizona Cardinals from 2019-2022. He started five games for the Cardinals in 2022 and 37 total tackles.

The need for a player like Vallejo stems from the rash of injuries by inside linebackers in recent weeks. In back-to-back weeks, Pittsburgh lost Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander for the season. Pittsburgh is likely to call up Mykal Walker and/or Tariq Carpenter from the practice squad to finish out the season.

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4 free-agent inside linebackers for the Steelers to consider

The Steelers need to add some talent at inside linebacker.

At one point, inside linebacker was one of the strongest positional units on the Pittsburgh Steelers. But after losing Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander to season-ending injuries in back-to-back weeks, Pittsburgh finds itself on the hunt for help at linebacker. Here are four guys on the free-agent market for the Steelers to consider going forward.

Steelers shift from ‘luxury’ to ‘traditional’ at inside linebacker

The Steelers are forced to move forward without linebacker Cole Holcomb who was a key part of their defense.

With Cole Holcomb sidelined for the remainder of the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers are forced to move forward without a key part of their interior defense.

After being brought in on a three-year deal, Holcomb emerged as the team’s top inside linebacker, having recorded 59 tackles, two pass breakups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

The Steelers’ next man up is Kwon Alexander, whom the team said will also get the green dot, but the luxury of three starting-caliber inside guys is no longer available to them.

“It was somewhat of a luxury,” Mike Tomlin said of having three linebackers. “We thought we had three really capable linebackers dividing the labor up between two positions. That’s a really good thing when you have an opportunity to do that. You really can specialize and allow guys week in and week out to do the things that they do best. They can remain fresher. So, it was a pleasure to have that collective talking about Cole, Elandon and Kwon.

“Now we simply got two guys for two, spots, and so it’s more of a traditional rotation. Obviously, it could create more opportunity for a guy like Mark Robinson in his second year, but he’s not going to get the type of involvement that Cole had. What we had was a luxury. What we have now is probably more of a traditional division of labor at the inside linebacker position.

Tomlin is confident that Alexander and Elandon Roberts are fully capable of doing the job.

“We had a luxury when we had all three, but we’ve got two really capable guys now who are going to act in more of a traditional fashion. We don’t feel like anything’s lost in that regard.”

As for second-year man Mark Robinson, he’ll be ready if his name is called.

“We don’t get ahead of ourselves,” Robinson told Teresa Varley of Steelers.com. “If it’s my time, it will be my time. If not, I just have to keep on doing what I am doing now and that is preparing myself.”

Surrounded by veterans, Robinson is in good hands as he grows within the defense.

“I feel good about the group of guys we’ve got,” he said. “Just preparation. That is one of the biggest things. It’s great to see how guys prepare for such a task on the weekend.”

“Those guys are like a group of brothers to me. Every day we come in here it’s the same. We keep building, and they stay on me, and I am open.”

In 12 games and two starts, Robinson has 14 tackles.

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Steelers LB Kwon Alexander gets the green dot

With Cole Holcomb out for the season, Kwon Alexander will now have the responsibility of relaying defensive plays to his unit.

The first question in everyone’s mind when Cole Holcomb went down with a season-ending knee injury was: Who gets the green dot?

Kwon Alexander, that’s who.

Per Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo, the veteran inside linebacker will be relaying defensive plays with Holcomb out.

You’ve seen the green dot, but if you don’t know what it’s all about, here it is. The defensive player (usually a linebacker or safety) donning a green sticker has a one-way communication system — consisting of a receiver and a speaker — in his helmet in which he can hear the coach’s instructions.

In the early days of the NFL, there was no on-field communication between players and coaches, merely hand signals. The system went through several iterations after initially being invented by two Cleveland Browns fans in 1956. It makes getting the unit on the same page more seamless and significantly reduces the need for timeouts. The signal, operated by the officials, is cut off just before the snap takes place (or after the play clock has only 15 seconds left).

Quarterbacks also wear them.

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Pittsburgh Steelers make two early-week roster moves

Cole Holcomb is heading to IR, while Anthony McFarland comes off.

It was something we all knew Thursday night the moment Cole Holcomb exited the field at Acrisure via medical cart. The Pittsburgh Steelers confirmed today that Holcomb is on injured reserve with a knee injury, ending his first season in the Black and Gold.

Though the extent of the injury is unknown, he is expected to make a full recovery, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Mike Tomlin could shed some light on the situation in his Tuesday presser.

Pittsburgh cleaned inside linebacker house in the offseason and brought Holcomb in on a three-year deal as part of the rebuild. He emerged as the team’s top inside linebacker, having recorded 59 tackles, two pass breakups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

Other offseason additions, Kwon Alexander and Elandon Roberts, will have increased roles. Roberts started all games but one — versus the Las Vegas Raiders — when Alexander had his only start. Second-year linebacker Mark Robinson, a 2022 seventh-round draft pick, could also see some time, but the team will likely add another free agent.

Running back Anthony McFarland, who’d been on injured reserve since injuring his knee in Week 2, was activated. He was designated to return on Oct. 16 and has been a full practice participant since.

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Steelers LB Cole Holcomb discharged from hospital after knee injury

Cole Holcomb suffered a season-ending knee injury on Thursday night.

The biggest hit the Pittsburgh Steelers took on Thursday night was the loss of linebacker Cole Holcomb. Holcomb suffered what NFL reporter Tom Pelissero characterized as a season-ending knee injury against the Tennessee Titans and even spent Thursday night in the hospital.

According to Pelissero, Holcomb was released from the hospital Friday after keeping him overnight for observation. After the game, head coach Mike Tomlin said the injury was serious but didn’t offer up any details other than a somber tone.

Holcomb’s replacement, Kwon Alexander came in and played well, with the game-ending interception on the Titans final offensive drive. We hope Holcomb is doing well and can make a full and speedy recovery. The Steelers signed Holcomb as a free agent in the offseason and he had quickly emerged as the team’s best all-around inside linebacker.

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Cole Holcomb suffers gruesome injury in Steelers’ TNF victory

Cole Holcomb, the former UNC linebacker (2015-2018) who’s one of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ top tacklers, will likely miss the rest of 2023.

The Pittsburgh Steelers, despite having one of the NFL’s most anemic offenses, keep finding ways to win.

Kenny Pickett threw a late touchdown pass to Diontae Johnson last night, which proved to be the eventual game-winning score in a close, 20-16 Steelers victory over the Tennessee Titans.

Despite Pittsburgh struggling to find a strong offensive rhythm, its defense is a major reason it’s 5-3 in a crowded AFC North.

One of the top producers on that defense is former UNC linebacker Cole Holcomb, who’s second on the Steelers with 52 tackles. Holcomb shined at Carolina from 2015-2018, helping the Tar Heels win the ACC Coastal Division in 2015 and leading them in tackles from 2016-2018.

Unfortunately for Holcomb, his NFL season might be cut short.

In pursuit of Titans star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, Holcomb’s left leg got bent in all wrong directions when teammate Keanu Neal was making a tackle.

If you are grossed out by sports injuries, this is one you won’t want to watch.

According to Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, Holcomb’s injury is serious. This is code for “Holcomb probably won’t play another down this year.”

How great of an impact will Holcomb’s injury have in the Steel City? Not as much as you might think.

Holcomb is the Steelers’ listed starter at left inside linebacker, but he has a very capable backup in Elandon Roberts. The former New England Patriot and Miami Dolphin, Roberts has 465 tackles and 12.5 sacks across 7.5 seasons.

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