Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 Players to watch vs. Titans in Preseason Week 3
By Samuel Teets
Tuzar Skipper, LB
The rookie from Toledo is competing for one of the final spots on Pittsburgh’s roster. In the first week of the preseason, Skipper and fellow rookie linebackers, Devin Bush and Ulysees Gilbert III, played well against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Skipper finished the game with two combined tackles, a sack and four quarterback hits. However, he played mostly toward the end of the game against players who likely won’t make 53-man rosters.
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Head coach Mike Tomlin put Skipper in the game earlier in Week 2 to see how the young man handled playing against better competition. Skipper rose to the occasion, recording three combined tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery. Gilbert also left his mark on the game, making four tackles.
Gilbert and Skipper are fighting an uphill battle. The Steelers are returning three starting linebackers from 2018. The team also added Bush through the draft and signed Mark Barron in free agency. Pittsburgh also drafted Sutton Smith 32 picks before the team took Gilbert. Add in Olasunkanmi Adeniyi, Anthony Chickillo and Tyler Matakevich and Pittsburgh’s linebacker room starts to look crowded.
As an undrafted free agent, Skipper is fighting against the odds to make the Steelers roster. He’s so under the radar that Getty Images doesn’t even have a picture of him. Skipper has done everything asked of him through the first two weeks of the preseason. If he keeps rising to challenges, it will be hard to cut him.