Steelers Now
The Pittsburgh Steelers strengthened the depth of their defensive back room last week by inking veteran safety Chuck Clark to a one-year contract. When you have an offseason this eventful, it’s easy to completely dismiss smaller moves such as this as insignificant. If anything, the lack of buzz around the DeShon Elliott signing last year taught folks this lesson. Given the massive void that Minkah Fitzpatrick leaves behind and questions about how the myriad of new pieces will fit together in 2025, this is a transaction that certainly warrants inspection.
Clark, an eight-year veteran entering his age-30 season, is no stranger to the uber-physical AFC North brand of ball, having started his career as a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens. He went from underdog to key contributor as a starting member of a couple of really feisty defenses before being traded to the New York Jets prior to the 2023 campaign. Unfortunately, a torn ACL ended his first season before it even began and dealt with an ankle injury that landed him on injured reserve once again last season. But those hardships didn’t stop head coach Mike Tomlin’s interest in adding him to the equation.
“I’m just highly familiar with his intangibles. He’s got a really good relationship with the game. He’s a hard worker. He’s a really good communicator. His football character comes highly recommended.” Tomlin said.
Being an adept communicator is something of a prerequisite for quality safety play in the modern NFL, and for him to check that box in the eyes of the coaching staff offers plenty of optimism. Of course, the amount of blown coverage assignments that were so evident during the Steelers five-game losing streak to end the 2024 season was a prime example of how things can head south quickly if everyone isn’t on the same page. Beyond some of the scheme familiarity across systems in Baltimore and Pittsburgh, it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s been in plenty of high-stakes bouts with guys like Elliott and Patrick Queen by his side. Sunday’s practice was a reminder of his eagerness to jump back into battle.
“That morning, I did my workout and they were talking about, ‘Can we get you out here?” Clark told Steelers Now on Sunday afternoon. “They were probably thinking I just wanted to watch, but I’m like, ‘I wanna get out there in the mix.’ … I definitely pride myself on that.” During his first practice in his new environment, Clark saw snaps at box safety and in the post, even breaking up a deep ball thrown in the direction of Roman Wilson. It was a quality first impression, but Tomlin definitely wasn’t surprised.
“I’ve been really impressed with his ability to digest schematics in a short period of time and execute defense. I’m not completely surprised by it, because we’ve competed against him over the years. I just know he has a reputation as a really solid professional. I think he’s displayed that in the short period of...
