The Pittsburgh Steelers releasing veteran inside linebacker Elandon Roberts Sunday morning came as a surprise. After signing him in mid-August to help shore up the inside linebacker room under first-year defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, it felt like the veteran, old-school linebacker was a roster lock and going to provide serious physicality to a position group that desperately needed it. Instead, he’s back on the open market, and there are more questions than answers as to why. It was one of the most surprising moves around the NFL Sunday, according to CBS Sports’ Carter Bahns. The Roberts release ranked No. 9 overall in CBS Sports’ rankings.
“Elandon Roberts made double-digit starts in six of his first eight years in the NFL, was a staple in the Raiders’ lineup last year and spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons as a fixture on the Steelers’ defense,” Bahns writes. “He reunited with both Pittsburgh and his former defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham, when he signed with the Steelers during the preseason. His familiarity with the franchise and its staff, plus his perennial role as a contributor, made him an unforeseen cut.”
The fact that Roberts remained a free agent into mid-August was surprising itself, but when the Steelers signed him it made a great deal of sense. After the inside linebacker room struggled mightily last season to defend the run and lacked that true downhill presence with some thump after not addressing the position in the draft, it made sense that Pittsburgh picked up the veteran, reuniting him in the Black and Gold, and with Graham. Roberts stated there was something different about playing with the Steelers, and that he was thrilled to be back. Then, he made his presence felt quickly in training camp practices with some big hits and dishing out punishment in the last two preseason games against the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills.
Though he played late into the game last Thursday in Buffalo, it’s something Roberts wanted as he wanted to get back up to speed and into playing shape ahead of the season. There was never a thought he wouldn’t be around. Until he was cut Sunday morning. Hopefully he circles back to Pittsburgh, either on its 53-man roster or on the practice squad. That doesn’t appear to be the case at this point though, which is frustrating — and very confusing from a roster construction standpoint.
