The Pittsburgh Steelers have one preseason game under the team's belt, and a lot of players had a successful preseason debut for the 2026 season. The team looked good aside from sloppy play that resulted in a ton of penalties, which is something that was definitely a point of emphasis throughout the last week of practice. Most of the rookie class looked great on the field, which is surprising considering how big the group was as the organization selected 10 players in the 2026 NFL Draft. There is still a chance that they don't all make the final roster, but most should after a strong first performance.
Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Robert Spears-Jennings walks on the field during Organized Team Activities (OTAs) in 2026.
One rookie that has been surprising fans since the start of training camp has been safety Robert Spears-Jennings. The Steelers drafted him in the seventh round of the 2026 NFL Draft, and he has played at a higher level than that throughout the training camp practices. He even looked great on the field against the Green Bay Packers as he got the start due to other injuries in the safety room. Jalen Ramsey, DeShon Elliott, and Jaquan Brisker all being beaten up has paved the way for more reps for Spears-Jennings in camp, and it led to him running out of the tunnel with the defensive starters last Thursday night.
Spears-Jennings was trending in the right direction, but now beat-writer Ray Fittipaldo believes he might be a guy that lands on the practice squad rather than the active roster. He released his first 53-man roster prediction where he had the rookie safety on the practice squad, and he spoke about this during a recent appearance on 93.7 The Fan.
"I put Spears-Jennings on the practice squad," Fittipaldo said. "Spears-Jennings, he's been getting a ton of reps with the ones, he just had a tough week last week, so I just sort of put him on the outside looking in because he didn't finish strong up at Saint Vincent. But he's actually been very good overall during training camp."
The rookie safety had a tough end to his time at training camp in Latrobe, but the fans won't really know anything about that because the inclement weather forced the Steelers to move inside for a lot of their final practices. The team actually broke camp earlier than expected and returned to Pittsburgh due to more inclement weather that was inbound.
Jordan Perez / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Robert Spears-Jennings during the 2026 offseason.
It isn't just the play of Spears-Jennings that is going to be a factor in whether or not he makes the final roster, it is also going to be the health of the rest of the safety room. If Elliott, Brisker, and Ramsey are all good to go by Week 1, it might be hard to find a roster spot for Spears-Jennings. The coaching staff would probably be forced to choose between him and a veteran safety like Rayshawn Jenkins, who also played well against the Packers.
Steelers Have A Major Decision That Could Impact Robert Spears-Jennings
Another thing to consider when thinking about Spears-Jennings' chances to make the team is the general roster gymnastics that have to be played with the depth chart when making the final decision, and how many players are kept at each position. The Steelers are one of the few teams in the NFL that are in a position to carry four quarterbacks into the regular season. The traditional number is three, so if four are carried, another position group is getting hurt somewhere. One less player is being kept. That player is more than likely going to come from the secondary or from the offensive line, which puts Spears-Jennings on the chopping block.
He will be a prime practice squad candidate, but he could get snatched up by another team in the meantime.
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