Player: S Chuck Clark
Stock Value: Down
Reasoning: Chuck Clark is coming off a game so bad that even he said he can’t recall being badly as badly as he was on Sunday. Meanwhile, amid DeShon Elliott’s injury, the Steelers are trading for Kyle Dugger. While he might not start right away, that seems destined to be his role. If they had more belief in their veteran safety group, they could have gone in another direction.
Chuck Clark was a quality starter for years, but there’s a reason the Steelers were able to sign him in training camp. While injuries have played a roll in derailing his career, it’s not his body of work arguing against him.
Clark had arguably his worst game as a Steeler this past Sunday, particularly in coverage. That was never the strength of his game, but now at 30 and with some major injuries behind him, it’s arguably a weakness. At least it certainly can be, and Packers TE Tucker Kraft and confirm that.
In six games this season, Chuck Clark has 33 tackles, including two for loss, with a forced fumble and a pass defensed. He has played two-thirds of the Steelers’ snaps on defense, and he also plays half of their special teams snaps. But are they simply asking him to do too much at this stage of his career?
With DeShon Elliott suffering a potentially season-ending injury, the Steelers must take stock of their safety room. They have a bunch of veterans now between Clark, Juan Thornhill, and Jabrill Peppers, with Kyle Dugger inbound. But who is good at what, and how much can you ask them to do it?
After last Sunday’s loss, Clark admitted he hadn’t gotten much practice against tight ends this year. He also said that’s going to change and was confident it would be corrected for the next game. Yet it hardly feels as simple as that, does it?
With regular season underway and the roster in place, it’s once again time to “take stock”. It took a while, but we finally saw some of thatchange the team talked about after the season ended. Certainly, the move to trade for WR DK Metcalf qualifies as a change, not to mention the accompanying contract. Oh, and they also traded some guy named George Pickens, which people found significant.
After a long offseason, we finally know what this Steelers team will look like for the 2025 season. The dust is long settled on both free agency andthe 2025 NFL Draft, and now we’re into the real thing . What final moves might the team make, if any? They’ve certainly made a flurry of moves, though some question whether they make much difference. This is a Steelers team starving for postseason success, but how desperate are they for a playoff win in 2025?
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