Brandon Lindsey might still get to play his home games at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USPRESSWIRE

Linebackers

Brandon Lindsey OLB (Pittsburgh)

Local college Defensive End (6’2” and 254 lbs.) who should transition to Outside Linebacker.  Lindsey can hopefully contribute on Special Teams at the beginning of his career, and in time push Jason Worilds and Chris Carter for playing time as a backup.  Could be a steal because Lindsey had a Day 3 draftable grade on him, and the Steelers can always use depth behind Harrison and Woodley.  Keith Butler can develop Linebackers, and it would be nice to see a former Panther succeed with the Steelers.

Adrian Robinson OLB (Temple)

Likely will be in the same boat as Brandon Lindsey and will vie for playing time at Outside Linebacker after contributing on Special Teams for a season or two.  At 6’1” 250 lbs., Robinson will have to make the transition from 4-3 Defensive End after starting 38 games at the position in college.  Robinson earned 2011 1st-Team All-MAC honors and could be a nice addition to the roster if he is stashed on the practice squad for this season.

Defensive Backs

Terry Carter CB (Louisiana Tech)

Former track athlete at Louisiana Tech, Carter will look to find a backup role on the Steelers or at least a spot on the Practice Squad.  At 5’10” 184 lbs., the 2011 1st Team All-WAC performer has decent size for the position, and will need to prove he can support in the run game like the other Steelers Corners as well  Carter will have to battle Robert Golden and Terrence Frederick for likely the final roster spot at Cornerback in camp.  Otherwise he will be on the practice squad.

Robert Golden CB/S (Arizona)

Golden has a decent shot of making the team due to his versatility as a Defensive Back and the thin depth at the Safety position.  A three year stater at Arizona, Golden (5’11” 202 lbs.) played both Corner and Safety, and possesses decent size to play either position.  Should compete with Terrence Frederick and Terry Carter for a backup job at Cornerback, and with Ryan Mundy the only backup Safety with any experience, Golden should get a look there as well.  Should be a Practice Squad guy with a good showing, and an outside chance to make the 53-man roster.

Defensive Linemen

Ikponmwosa Igbinosun DE (Southern Connecticut State)

Igbinosun is a 5-Technique Defensive End who should compete for time in the rotation as a backup behind Keisel, Hood, and Heyward.  He’s a raw prospect for Defensive Line Coach John Mitchell to work with, and should at least find self on Practice Squad if he flashes something in camp.  At 6’4” and 288 lbs., Igbinosun has the perfect body type to play the 5-Technique and a year or two of developing his game with Mitchell could make him a solid addition to the rotation in time.

Jake Stoller DE (Yale)

Will have an uphill battle to make team, and main competition will be with Igbinosun for final backup spot in 5-Technique rotation.  At 6’3” 284 lbs., Stoller was a 2nd Team All-Ivy League selection last season and a two year starter.  Stoller’s best chance of contributing will likely be on Special Teams, as it could be his only chance to make the Practice Squad.

Specialists

Drew Butler has a legitimate shot of becoming the Steelers' Punter in 2012 and beyond. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-US PRESSWIRE

Drew Butler P (Georgia)

Excellent chance of earning a roster spot with Daniel Sepulveda gone, and Jeremy Kapinos providing his only competition.  Butler, a three year starter with a big leg, was a 2nd Team All-American in his Junior season, and averaged 45.2 Yards per Punt during his career.  Butler was also named to Georgia’s “Team of the Decade” as a collegiate player as well.  Of all the Free Agents brought in, Butler has the best chance to make the team.

Grant Ressel K (Missouri)

Ressel should compete with Shaun Suisham and possibly another candidate (Swayze Waters) for the starting job in camp.  Ressel was an All-American in 2009, but has been dealing with some confidence issues.  Ressel had only missed 3 of 46 kicks in the two seasons prior to 2011 until he lost his job after going 7 for 13 to start the year.  Hopefully Ressel’s confidence can come back, because some competition must come in for Suisham.

Offensive Linemen

Ryan Lee OG (Furman)

Ryan Lee will face stiff competition from the three Linemen the Steelers drafted, fellow Free Agent signee Desmond Stapleton, and entrenched backups Doug Legursky and Ramon Foster.  At 6’3” and 308 lbs., Lee will try to find a spot at the crowded Guard position, but will likely not be making the final roster or even the Practice Squad.

Desmond Stapleton OG (Rutgers)

If you recognize the last name it’s because he is indeed related to former Steelers’ Guard Darnell Stapleton (brother) and consequently he plays the same position (Guard).  At 6’5” 301 lbs., Stapleton will likely be coming in to compete for a job at Guard.  It will not be easy though, because with the amount of depth Pittsburgh has at the position now, Stapleton will have a tough time making the Practice Squad.

Wide Receivers

Marquis Maze WR (Alabama)

Maze should compete for time on Special Teams this season. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-US PRESSWIRE

Maze will have an uphill climb to make the roster as he will have to beat out Wallace, Brown, Sanders, Cotchery, and newcomers Toney Clemons and Connor Dixon for a spot.  Furthermore, Maze will face competition on Special Teams and in the return game from RB Chris Rainey as well.  The tiny Maze (5’7” 186 lbs.) could be sent to Practice Squad and developed for a year until Wallace leaves, but he still will have to make heads turn in camp to stay around.

Connor Dixon WR (Duquesne)

A former Quarterback, Dixon, like Maze, enters a crowded WR group and would likely have to show his worth on Special Teams before getting any real time as a pass catcher.  At 6’5” and 222 lbs. he towers over the rest of Pittsburgh’s Wide Receivers, which could give him an advantage.  However, he has only played the position for two and a half years, and will face some stiff competition to make the roster, although he could make the practice squad.

While the investigation down in Georgia continues, the Pittsburgh Steelers have thankfully made some news which doesn’t involve the sexual predator standing behind center.  In a surprising departure from their usual method of doing business, the front office has gone on an unprecedented wave of free agent spending in the past twenty-four hours. While none of these acquisitions are either marquee players or pricey big ticket items, it’s still a notable change from pretty much every other off-season when the team would wait until the market had dried up and then picked through whatever leftovers they could find.

The most notable signing is that of Ryan Clark.  I’ll admit to not expecting him back once he hit the open market but it appears he had a change of heart (or the money he was expecting to be offered wasn’t there after all).   He has accepted a four year, $14 million contract which is far from the $6 million he would’ve made had the Steelers placed one of their tags on him.  So it looks like they got him for the price they wanted all along.

While I don’t believe Clark is anything more than average, it’s hard to take issue with this move.  I would’ve let him walk if his contract demands were ludicrous but at $3 million a year he’s almost a bargain.  There aren’t any decent replacements available via free agency and Ryan Mundy has shown he’s not starter quality.  Meanwhile, even if the Steelers are able to take one of the top safeties in this year’s draft, rookies never see significant playing time for Dick LeBeau.

The Steelers also signed another safety, Will Allen.   Allen spent his entire six year career with Tampa Bay, where he was originally under the tutelage of secondary coach Mike Tomlin.  Allen started sporadically for the Bucs, entering last season as the starter before losing the final half of the year to a hand injury.  Allen will probably serve as the primary back-up to Clark with his greatest value coming on special teams.   Allen is fantastic coverage “gunner” who was even selected as a first alternate to the Pro Bowl for his special teams work.   Maybe we’ll actually be able to cover kicks this season.

Another newcomer to the Steelers is WR Arnaz Battle.  Battle had five receptions last season for the 49ers and a grand total of 11 touchdowns over his eight year career.  The key number when it comes to Battle is his height:  6’1.  The Steelers always want to have at least one large target among the WR corps and it looks like Battle is going to be that guy.  The obvious message you can read into this is that the days of Limas Sweed dropping passes in the black and gold appear to be rapidly coming to an end.

Finally, the Steelers have also re-signed our long lost gadget play specialist, Antwaan Randle El.   After throwing the game winning touchdown pass in Super Bowl XL, Randle El cashed in on his sudden fame by accepting a $31 million contract from the buffoon out in Washington D.C.    Despite leading the ‘Skins in yardage and catches last year, Randle El was cut as part of a team wide housecleaning by new head coach Mike Shanahan.  Although he started for the Steelers, Randle El was always best used as a third down possession-type receiver and as a return man.   Stefan Logan did well on kick returns but had problems as a punt returner so I’d imagine Randle El will be given those duties next season.

And, hey, he was a starting quarterback back in college where he was the first player in Division I history to pass for 40 career touchdowns and score 40 career rushing touchdowns.  If worst comes to worst, maybe he can move back.

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