"You Never Know": Steelers Keeping Options Open As Trade Market Entices Omar Khan

The roster for the Pittsburgh Steelers appears to be in pretty good shape with 2026 training camp fully underway. The team returned a lot of contributors, but also has several new faces that are looking to make an impact. One of those additions who didn't last long, however, was Darnell Savage Jr. It took him a while to finally put pen to paper after initial reports came out about him signing to play in the Steel City. Then, just days into the most important stretch of the offseason, the organization reached an agreement with Rayshawn Jenkins, leading to the release of Savage, who barely had a chance to get his feet wet.

On paper, the Steelers have a lot of depth in the secondary. However, both Joey Porter Jr. and Jalen Ramsey are dealing with injuries, so a lot of different guys are getting opportunities during workouts. While DeShon Elliott also works his way back from a pretty gruesome surgery, Pittsburgh could have some worries regarding the backend of the defense, specifically at safety.

The biggest potential issue arising for the unit is at free safety in particular. A lot of the guys on the roster are viewed more so as strong safeties, so the Steelers' front office might not be perfectly content with how that group looks. General Manager Omar Khan has never been one to shy away from making moves at random times, so it could be something to keep an eye on moving forward.

The free agency pool this time of year is always rather weak. Some veterans wait around to see if an injury pops up somewhere, but, for the most part, Pittsburgh won't have too many legitimate upgrades to bring in when it comes to targeting that area of players. The trade market, however, could be a different story depending on how the month of August goes.

Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette hosted his weekly fan chat on Tuesday prior to the team's training camp practice. A question was asked about the free safety situation and if it were at all possible for Khan to consider some kind of addition. The insider wasn't ready to rule anything out, but also didn't provide too much information pointing toward a trade potentially occurring.

"You never know," Dulac noted. "That will be determined at the end of the preseason, in all likelihood, when they start evaluating their final roster. But I think the Steelers have done a really good job of building their roster."

The roster as a whole does look a lot different than it did in 2025. The offense has definitely received a bit of a makeover, and the defensive unit also has some fresh faces. Getting everyone healthy will be critical, and Jenkins could also end up surprising some people. Regardless, it doesn't appear as if Khan is considering making a significant move much right now.

Almost every position on defense received some kind of upgrade and/or new face. The safety spot has been in limbo because no one is quite sure what the plan is for Ramsey, and Elliott still hasn't really worked in during 11-on-11 drills. The regular season is still over a month away, but it's worth keeping an eye on this area because of the amount of unknowns that are currently in play.

Steelers Will Make A Move If They Need To

Pittsburgh has already made it clear that the 2026 season is not going to simply be a throw-away year. The team wants to contend, and if a trade is necessary to shore up the backend of the defense, Khan won't hesitate to do so. How certain guys heal from injuries might be what ends up determining which approach the Steelers' front office chooses to take.

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