The Pittsburgh Steelers have of late grown accustomed to having a veteran presence in the slot in their offense. It was a role that the great Hines Ward fulfilled in the latter stages of his career, and he was succeeded in that capacity by Jerricho Cotchery. After Cotchery departed in free agency, the Steelers looked to shift Markus Wheaton into that spot with mixed results.
While there was a variety of complicating circumstances in Wheaton’s up and down performance, he has talked in the past about how it was a feeling out process adjusting to seeing the bulk of his playing time in the slot rather than outside, which is where he has been accustomed to playing throughout his football career.