When the Steelers selected Carnell Lake in the 1989 NFL Draft and moved the college linebacker to safety -- and later cornerback -- they were making a move outside the norm.
And for as long as Ryan Shazier was on the team, some fans called for the 229-pound inside linebacker to be moved to safety -- which would have been a silly move, to be sure.
So, for the team that often used safety Troy Polamalu as a linebacker in sub packages in the mid-2000s, it's nothing new to be again exploring those options with rookie draft picks Terrell Edmunds and Marcus Allen and veteran free-agent signing Morgan Burnett.
In fact, even before losing Shazier to a potential career-ending back injury last Dec. 4 in Cincinnati, the Steelers had shown an interest in acquiring hybrid-type safeties who could drop down in the box and effectively play linebacker on passing downs.
First, they showed serious interest in selecting Michigan's Jabrill Peppers in last year's draft, but he was selected by Cleveland before they had the opportunity to select him.
Then, they signed former Tennessee Titan Daimion Stafford soon after the draft, but the 219-pound safety retired before the start of training camp, never playing a down for the Steelers.
Finally, they made a trade with Tampa Bay to acquire 216-pound safety J.J. Wilcox just prior to the start of the regular season. But Wilcox struggled to pick up the defense so late in the process, then got himself into Mike Tomlin's doghouse by committing a couple of costly penalties on special teams.
Wilcox was released soon after Pittsburgh selected Edmunds and Allen in the draft and the Steelers hope they finally have the player or players they have coveted to do what they desire with their defense.
In fact, they wasted no time in putting the 6-1, 217-pound Edmunds, their first-round draft pick, at linebacker in their sub packages at their weekend rookie minicamp. They also looked at the 6-2, 215-pound Allen, a fifth-round draft pick.
"Everything was going fast, but you know it eventually slowed down for everybody on the defensive side of the ball and we came out and we competed well," Edmunds said.
The Steelers would have preferred to select a linebacker in the draft who was capable of replacing Shazier. But there are only so many three-down inside linebackers available in any draft. And once they got shut out in that regard, they did the next best thing.
Ideally, they would have liked to have another hybrid-type player to play with Shazier. Now, they'll ask one of their new safeties to do many of the things Shazier did so effectively, such as cover receivers and tight ends in space while also being a factor against the run.
That in itself is nothing new. The Steelers used Polamalu in that way throughout his career and since his retirement, it has become more fashionable around the league. Burnett lined up at inside linebacker at times for Green Bay in the past, while safeties such as Deone Bucannon, Mark Barron, Reshad Jones, Jaquiski Tartt and Keanu Neal are among those who often line up at linebacker. In fact, some of those players are now listed as linebackers by their respective teams.
So the Steelers aren't reinventing the wheel. They're simply joining in on the process, one started when Doug Plank first dropped into the box on passing downs in Buddy Ryan's 46 defense back in the 1980s.
But Tomlin isn't ready after a few practices to say he's finally gotten what he's obviously desired for a couple of years.
"We’re not ready to write a story in that regard," Tomlin said. "We’re just trying to strengthen ourselves for the fights that lie ahead here in ’18, and we feel like we’ve got some young people capable of helping us."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Steelers rookie camp, Rooney Sports Complex. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS