Training camp is right around the corner, which means players across the league are going to be competing for one of only 53 roster spots. Really it’s less than that since a majority of the spots are spoken for, which makes position battles this time of year even more meaningful.
It’s not just guys already on a roster who are looking to secure a spot. The mightiest waves of free agency crested and rolled back months ago, but there are still a slew of talented players still looking for work.
One of those players happens to have ties back to Tampa Bay. Jordan Whitehead was brought back last year in an effort to get the defensive band back together. It didn’t work out, but Whitehead still deserves a shot somewhere in the league and it might not be long before he gets one.
Jordan Whitehead deserves a training camp invite somewhere, even if it’s not Tampa
We know Whitehead won’t be getting an invite to Buccaneers camp, both because of how things went last year but also due to how competitive the room is. Antoine Winfield Jr., Tykee Smith, and Kaevon Merriweather have spots locked up — the latter perhaps less so than the others — with rookies JJ Roberts and Shilo Sanders looking to earn spots as well.
The situation is different up in Pittsburgh, though.
Last week Steelers writer Jack Markowski tossed out the idea of Whitehead having a homecoming in Pittsburgh that would double as a reunion with Aaron Rodgers from their time together with the Jets.
"DeShon Elliott is entrenched as a starter at safety for the Steelers after signing a two-year, $12.225 million extension last month, but the team could use another veteran option at the position alongside both him and Juan Thornhill," Markowski wrote.
There could be a home for him in Las Vegas as well, with former teammate Tom Brady.
Another AFC North team could use some safety help. Whitehead could find work in Cincinnati where the Bengals need to retool things on defense if they want to stop wasting Joe Burrow’s prime. It’s a perfect situation to have a bit of house money — the Bengals defense is not good — where it could be easy to shine.
We saw him do that in the Monday night game two years ago where Rodgers got injured, and Bucs fans are familiar with what he can do when he’s firing on all cylinders.
That wasn’t the case during his second stint in Tampa but that doesn’t mean he’s washed. If given the right opportunity there’s a chance he bounces back and reminds everyone he can be an impactful safety.
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