Mike Florio speculates that the Steelers could release Cameron Sutton after his suspension

The Pittsburgh Steelers signed CB Cameron Sutton despite knowing he would face disciplinary action from the league following his arrest for domestic violence. On Monday, the NFL announced an eight-game suspension for Sutton. Once that suspension is up, the Steelers could trade Sutton, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio speculated Wednesday on 93.7 The Fan.

“I think one of the questions here is whether they’ll take him back after the Giants’ Monday night game, when the eight games are complete. Maybe by then they’ll decide we’re good, we’re OK. There’s no guaranteed money. They can get rid of him if they want once the lockout is up.”

Someone will need to step in and play slot corner in Sutton’s absence, with Grayland Arnold, Beanie Bishop Jr. or Josiah Scott being the most likely candidates. Pittsburgh could also bring in a familiar face from outside the organization like Patrick Peterson or Chandon Sullivan, or possibly sign someone cut by another team in recent roster cuts. If whoever takes the slot position plays well, the Steelers may not need Sutton and could decide to move on and keep their roster unchanged, especially if there is no clear candidate on the 53-man roster.

The optics of signing Sutton were already not the best, and Florio believes the Steelers’ decision to bring him back should be looked at more closely. He said on The PM Team that if there was video of the incident involving Sutton, as there was with Ray Rice in 2012, Sutton would have “no chance” with any team and would not be with the Steelers now.

Mike Tomlin said the team’s familiarity with Sutton helped with the decision to bring him back. If the Steelers truly believe that, it’s unlikely they would release him if they’re happy with him. Releasing him when they already have a solid cornerback option would make sense to some extent, but Sutton could probably help the team down the stretch even if they have someone who plays well in the slot.

The Steelers decided to sign Sutton knowing there would be some well-deserved blowback. Releasing him after Week 8 wouldn’t do much to save face at this point, and unless Sutton comes back in poor form or doesn’t perform well in practice, then releasing him doesn’t make much sense from a football perspective.

We’ll see in training camp who, if anyone, can step up and secure the slot corner job. If he performs well, there’s a chance it could become a permanent job (at least for the season). But even then, it seems unlikely that Sutton will be released entirely, unless the Steelers really want to save a few bucks or save face for choosing to sign him in the first place.