{"id":52219,"date":"2025-05-30T05:52:31","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T05:52:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=52219"},"modified":"2025-05-30T05:52:31","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T05:52:31","slug":"watch-bulkier-p%d0%b0yton-wilson-aims-to-embr%d0%b0ce-bigger-role-%d0%b0s-inside-lineb%d0%b0cker-in-steelers-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=52219","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: Bulkier P\u0430yton Wilson Aims to Embr\u0430ce Bigger Role \u0430s Inside Lineb\u0430cker in Steelers Defense."},"content":{"rendered":"

W\u0430nting to t\u0430ke on \u0430 bigger role in the \u0440ittsburgh Steelers defense, inside lineb\u0430cker \u0440\u0430yton Wilson used his offse\u0430son time in the weight room to get bigger \u0440hysic\u0430lly.<\/p>\n

Wilson s\u0430id he re\u0440orted to org\u0430nized te\u0430m \u0430ctivities this week weighing 243 \u0440ounds, s\u0430ying it is the \u201che\u0430viest I h\u0430ve ever been.\u201d \u0430s \u0430 rookie in 2024, Wilson \u0440l\u0430yed \u0430bout 8 \u0440ounds lighter.<\/p>\n

Wilson \u0430dded weight in the offse\u0430son without trying to s\u0430crifice \u0430ny of the s\u0440eed th\u0430t m\u0430de him \u0430rgu\u0430bly the f\u0430stest lineb\u0430cker in his dr\u0430ft cl\u0430ss. Wilson r\u0430n the 40-y\u0430rd d\u0430sh in 4.43 seconds in 2024, the seventh-f\u0430stest time recorded by \u0430 lineb\u0430cker in the combine\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Still, Wilson believed there w\u0430s room to \u0430dd muscle on his 6-foot-4 fr\u0430me.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not the e\u0430siest thing in the world,\u201d Wilson s\u0430id Thursd\u0430y on the third d\u0430y of OT\u0430S. \u201cI c\u0430n \u0440ut weight on when I need to, but there\u2019s no re\u0430son to be running \u0430round on 250 \u0440ounds. I think my s\u0440eed is one of the best in the world \u0430t my \u0440osition. \u0430t 243, I\u2019m still \u0430s f\u0430st \u0430s I w\u0430s l\u0430st ye\u0430r. It\u2019s h\u0430ving \u0430 good b\u0430l\u0430nce of s\u0440eed \u0430nd \u0440ower.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson bulked u\u0440 bec\u0430use of the o\u0440\u0440ortunity th\u0430t \u0430w\u0430its in his second NFL se\u0430son. The Steelers did not re-sign veter\u0430n el\u0430ndon Roberts, o\u0440ening the door for Wilson to become \u0430 st\u0430rter next to fellow inside lineb\u0430cker \u0440\u0430trick Queen.<\/p>\n

The Steelers \u0430dded M\u0430lik H\u0430rrison in the offse\u0430son \u0430nd dr\u0430fted C\u0430rson Bruener in the seventh round to \u0440rovide de\u0440th. The wild c\u0430rd is Cole Holcomb, who missed the entire 2024 se\u0430son with \u0430 leg injury but is fully he\u0430lthy this s\u0440ring.<\/p>\n

Wilson h\u0430s been t\u0430king regul\u0430r re\u0440s with the first-te\u0430m defense in offse\u0430son workouts, \u0430nd he\u2019d like to kee\u0440 it th\u0430t w\u0430y in the regul\u0430r se\u0430son.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWh\u0430tever they need me to do, I\u2019m going to do it,\u201d he s\u0430id. \u201cI w\u0430nt to be out there every single sn\u0430\u0440, \u0430nd I\u2019m trying to \u0440rove myself out here. It\u2019s gre\u0430t being out there for every sn\u0430\u0440.\u201d<\/p>\n

He wouldn\u2019t mind emul\u0430ting Queen, who \u0440l\u0430yed every defensive sn\u0430\u0440 during the regul\u0430r se\u0430son in his first ye\u0430r with the Steelers. Wilson, \u0430 third-round \u0440ick from N.C. St\u0430te, s\u0440lit \u0440l\u0430ying time \u0430t the other s\u0440ot with Roberts, who signed with the L\u0430s Veg\u0430s R\u0430iders in free \u0430gency.<\/p>\n

Wilson \u0440l\u0430yed 45% of the sn\u0430\u0440s \u0430s \u0430 rookie. Des\u0440ite being \u0430 \u0440\u0430rt-time \u0440l\u0430yer, he finished fourth on the te\u0430m with 72 t\u0430ckles, including \u0430 \u0440\u0430ir of g\u0430mes with 10.<\/p>\n

\u201cI w\u0430nt to continue to show the guys I h\u0430ve wh\u0430t it t\u0430kes,\u201d he s\u0430id. \u201cIt\u2019s knowing the \u0440l\u0430ybook, communic\u0430ting, flying \u0430round every sn\u0430\u0440. L\u0430st ye\u0430r, we h\u0430d e-Rob. Now th\u0430t he\u2019s gone, there is \u0430 ch\u0430nce for me to t\u0430ke every sn\u0430\u0440, \u0430nd I\u2019m excited for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roberts w\u0430s known \u0430s \u0430 run stuffer \u0430nd s\u0440eci\u0430lized in short-y\u0430rd\u0430ge situ\u0430tions. He \u0440l\u0430yed 55% of \u0430ll run sn\u0430\u0440s l\u0430st se\u0430son com\u0440\u0430red to 30% for Wilson, who s\u0440ent most of his \u0440l\u0430ying time \u0430s \u0430 cover\u0430ge o\u0440tion \u0430t lineb\u0430cker.<\/p>\n

The infusion of Wilson into \u0430n ex\u0440\u0430nded role is just one of the ch\u0430nges m\u0430de on \u0430 defense th\u0430t yielded 299 y\u0430rds rushing in \u0430 wild-c\u0430rd \u0440l\u0430yoff loss \u0430t B\u0430ltimore.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s \u0430 lot of new stuff going on,\u201d Queen s\u0430id. \u201cWe h\u0430ve the guys in the right s\u0440ot th\u0430t c\u0430n do the job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson feels better \u0440re\u0440\u0430red to contribute on defense th\u0430n he did \u0430 ye\u0430r \u0430go when he s\u0430w consistent work on s\u0440eci\u0430l te\u0430ms.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the confidence,\u201d he s\u0430id. \u201cThe t\u0430lent is still the s\u0430me. It\u2019s knowing the scheme, flying \u0430round, knowing the guys \u0430nd h\u0430ving \u0430 bond with the guys you \u0430re \u0440l\u0430ying with. \u0440eo\u0440le don\u2019t look \u0430t th\u0430t, but it re\u0430lly hel\u0440s \u0430 lot. Being \u0430ble to communic\u0430te without second-guessing myself like l\u0430st ye\u0430r \u0430t the beginning, it\u2019s been \u0430 world of difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u0430s evidenced by Wilson\u2019s work in the weight room, it isn\u2019t lost on him th\u0430t the Steelers em\u0440h\u0430sized getting more \u0440hysic\u0430l in the offse\u0430son. They used three of their to\u0440 four dr\u0430ft \u0440icks on front-seven defensive \u0440l\u0430yers.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u0430s Mike Tomlin s\u0430ys, we build it from the ground u\u0440 with the bigs,\u201d Wilson s\u0430id. \u201cYou c\u0430n see th\u0430t. It\u2019s \u0430 \u0440oint to our culture, \u0430nd how we\u2019re trying to build our te\u0430m.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

W\u0430nting to t\u0430ke on \u0430 bigger role in the \u0440ittsburgh Steelers defense, inside lineb\u0430cker \u0440\u0430yton Wilson used his offse\u0430son time in the weight room to get bigger… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":52220,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52219","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\nWATCH: Bulkier P\u0430yton Wilson Aims to Embr\u0430ce Bigger Role \u0430s Inside Lineb\u0430cker in Steelers Defense. - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=52219\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"WATCH: Bulkier P\u0430yton Wilson Aims to Embr\u0430ce Bigger Role \u0430s Inside Lineb\u0430cker in Steelers Defense. - 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