Pittsburgh Steelers legend James Harrison did not stay quiet after the team released veteran linebacker Elandon Roberts during final roster cuts for the 2026 season.
Harrison took to social media to question the decision almost immediately, making it clear that he had expected Roberts to be part of Pittsburgh's defense when the regular season began.
"I hope we don't regret this cause I didn't see this coming in a million years," Harrison wrote on X. "You telling me you brought this man in as a camp body? Cause that's damn sure not what it sounded like was happening when he got here. We gon find out quick if this was a good decision or not in Week 1 vs Bijan though."
The reaction carried additional weight coming from Harrison, one of the most recognizable defensive players in modern Steelers history. Harrison spent most of his NFL career in Pittsburgh, won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award following the 2008 season and was part of two Steelers Super Bowl championship teams.
His concern centered on a linebacker who appeared to have done enough during the preseason to earn a place on Pittsburgh's 53-man roster.
The Steelers officially released Roberts on Sunday, August 30, as part of the team's final round of moves to reach the NFL's 53-player limit. Pittsburgh also released linebackers Malik Harrison and several other veterans while completing one of the final stages of roster construction before the regular season.
Roberts' departure was particularly surprising because the Steelers had only brought him back on August 13, signing the veteran to a one-year contract less than three weeks before releasing him. His return initially appeared to be about much more than simply providing an extra player for training camp.
Roberts already knew the organization, and Pittsburgh knew exactly what kind of player it was getting.
He spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons with the Steelers, appearing in 33 games and starting 29. Across those two seasons he recorded 147 tackles, including 92 solo tackles, along with 15 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble. His physical, downhill style made him especially useful against the running game and helped make him popular with Steelers fans.
Roberts left Pittsburgh after the 2024 season and joined the Las Vegas Raiders for 2025. He remained productive there, starting 16 of his 17 appearances and finishing with 90 tackles, including six tackles for loss. That performance demonstrated that Roberts could still handle a substantial defensive workload despite entering the later stages of his NFL career.
His experience goes considerably beyond Pittsburgh and Las Vegas.
A sixth-round pick by the New England Patriots in the 2016 NFL Draft, Roberts developed from a late-round selection into a longtime NFL starter. He spent four seasons with New England and was part of Patriots teams that won Super Bowl LI and Super Bowl LIII. He later played three seasons with the Miami Dolphins, serving as a defensive captain there and becoming one of the team's more productive tacklers.
By the time Pittsburgh brought him back in August, Roberts had played 156 regular-season games and started 120 of them during his NFL career. He had accumulated 58 tackles for loss, 34 quarterback hits and 14.5 sacks.
His preseason performance gave little indication that his second stint with Pittsburgh would end so quickly.
Roberts played in Pittsburgh's preseason games against the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills and logged 81 total snaps, including 71 on defense. He recorded 10 tackles over those appearances. Against the Jets, Roberts led Pittsburgh with five tackles, including one tackle for loss, and was named the Steelers Digest Player of the Week.
Those performances led many observers to believe Roberts had secured a role as an experienced rotational inside linebacker.
Instead, Pittsburgh chose to enter the season with Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson as its primary inside linebackers, with Cole Holcomb and Carson Bruener behind them. The Steelers kept four inside linebackers and four outside linebackers on their initial 53-man roster.
That decision helps explain Harrison's reference to Atlanta Falcons star Bijan Robinson.
Pittsburgh opens its regular season against Atlanta, and stopping Robinson figures to be one of the defense's biggest assignments. Robinson produced a franchise-record 2,298 yards from scrimmage during the 2025 season, including 1,478 rushing yards and 820 receiving yards. His ability to hurt defenses both as a runner and a receiver makes him considerably more difficult to handle than a traditional between-the-tackles running back.
Roberts' strength has traditionally been attacking the running game. Pro Football Focus gave him a 76.7 run-defense grade with Las Vegas in 2025, ranking him 21st among 88 qualifying linebackers, according to EssentiallySports.
That does not necessarily mean Pittsburgh made the wrong move. Roberts is an experienced run defender, but the Steelers may believe their younger linebackers offer more versatility, particularly in coverage and on special teams.
That versatility appears to have been an important factor throughout Pittsburgh's roster decisions under head coach Mike McCarthy. The Steelers' own analysis of the initial roster noted McCarthy's emphasis on players being capable of handling multiple jobs, including contributing on special teams.
Roberts, meanwhile, is a 32-year-old veteran whose greatest value comes as a physical interior defender. That can make roster mathematics difficult when a team is trying to preserve spots for younger players who can contribute on several different units.
Still, the timing of the move raised questions.
Pittsburgh knew Roberts' age and playing style when it signed him in August. The Steelers also had years of firsthand experience with him from his previous stint with the organization. Bringing him into camp, watching him produce during the preseason and then releasing him less than three weeks after signing him naturally led to questions about what Pittsburgh originally envisioned his role to be.
Harrison was not the only former Steelers player unhappy with the move. Former Pittsburgh defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko also criticized the decision publicly, describing the handling of Roberts as disrespectful and questioning why the organization would bring an established veteran into camp only to release him shortly before the season.
There was initially speculation that Pittsburgh could bring Roberts back after making additional roster moves, but Roberts himself indicated after his release that there was no arrangement in place for him to return. As a vested NFL veteran, Roberts does not have to pass through the normal waiver process and can sign with another team.
That makes the situation especially interesting. Pittsburgh could find itself wanting another experienced run defender later in the season, but Roberts could already be playing somewhere else.
The Steelers also know their initial 53-man roster is unlikely to remain unchanged for long. Injuries, practice-squad moves and the availability of veterans around the league routinely lead to additional transactions during the days immediately before Week 1.
For now, however, Pittsburgh appears ready to move forward without Roberts.
That places additional responsibility on Queen, Wilson, Holcomb and Bruener as the Steelers prepare for Atlanta. Queen and Wilson are expected to carry most of the workload, while the depth behind them will be tested as the season develops.
Harrison's criticism therefore sets up an unusually clear early test for the decision.
If Pittsburgh contains Robinson and the Falcons' running game in Week 1, Roberts' release could quickly become little more than another difficult roster decision made at the end of training camp.
If Robinson runs through the Steelers defense, however, Harrison's warning is almost certain to resurface.
For a franchise built around a long tradition of physical linebacker play, Pittsburgh's decision to move on from one of its most experienced run defenders will receive plenty of attention when the first meaningful snaps of the 2026 season are played.