The Pittsburgh Steelers made a pair of trades at last year’s deadline for WR Mike Williams and OLB Preston Smith. They each only ended up playing about 20 snaps per game and had a minimal impact as the Steelers floundered down the stretch of the season. Don’t expect a similarly small role for new S Kyle Dugger, however.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette insider Ray Fittipaldo thinks he could have a big role in relatively short order.
“He certainly fits that mold of run-stopping strong safety that they need with DeShon Elliott out,” Fittipaldo said Wednesday via 93.7 The Fan’s Morning Show. “If you look around that safety room, Chuck Clark was three steps behind Tucker Kraft on that touchdown late in the game. [Jabrill] Peppers, they haven’t used him much. [Juan] Thornhill is kinda who he is. I do think Dugger, if he can pick up the defense quickly, is probably gonna have a chance to be a starter.”
Given how the Steelers integrated both Peppers and Clark into the defense, there’s no reason that Dugger can’t start playing significant snaps by Week 10 against the Los Angeles Chargers. Peppers didn’t play on defense against the Seahawks in his first week. He then played 43 snaps against the Patriots the following week and had a key fumble recovery.
Peppers and Dugger spent three years in the same safety room in New England. Assuming they have a good relationship, that can be an asset for the Steelers to help get Dugger up to speed quickly.
Jalen Ramsey can help cover up some of the deficiencies at safety, but they desperately needed a starting option after Elliott’s knee injury. Is Dugger a slam-dunk option who was playing great football over the last two seasons? Not really, but he’s at least on the right side of 30 with plenty of experience and a history of playmaking in the league.
Check out what Dugger brings to the team via our Alex Kozora’s film room study.
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