The Pittsburgh Steelers have a formula for their organization. They are never the team who goes out and spends frivolously in free agency. Rather, they are the team who decides to build through the NFL Draft. Doing so, and drafting well, allows the team to remain competitive for years to come, without exhausting valuable salary cap space necessary to re-sign specific players.
While the Steelers typically rely on the draft to re-stock their depth chart, in the Mike Tomlin era the team hasn’t wanted to lean on rookies to contribute right away. They would prefer to allow the rookies at least a season to get their feet wet, playing sparingly in the process, before taking on a starter’s role.