Four NFL teams that should be terrified by their lack of roster depth

Roster depth is mostly ignored in August because studying backups isn’t quite as exciting as predicting the Super Bowl. Then somebody gets hurt, an unknown reserve jogs onto the field and an entire season begins to wobble.

These four NFL teams have playoff expectations. They also have position groups that could collapse after one more injury.

Commanders cannot survive many more absences

Washington’s 41-3 preseason loss to Baltimore was ugly enough to raise questions beyond the final score.

The Commanders managed only 60 yards and one first down during the first half. They finished with seven first downs while Baltimore collected 26. Washington rested 41 players, but that was the point: the players behind its starters looked completely overmatched.

That problem is no longer hypothetical. Laremy Tunsil and Johnny Newton are beginning the season on injured reserve, while Deatrich Wise Jr. is on the physically unable to perform list. Washington signed D.J. Humphries after losing Tunsil, but asking a 32-year-old newcomer to protect Jayden Daniels isn’t Plan A. It’s glass-break territory.

Another injury along either line could expose Adam Peters’ roster construction in a hurry.

Bears have already reached into their secondary reserves

Chicago expected Coby Bryant to strengthen its defensive backfield. Instead, knee surgery landed him on injured reserve, and he could miss four to six months.

Kyler Gordon’s health has created another problem. Rookie Malik Muhammad may be required to replace him in the slot despite not playing that position in college. Throwing a rookie into an unfamiliar role against NFL receivers is less a development plan than a distress signal.

The Bears can survive one secondary injury. They may even survive two if the offense produces as expected. But if Jaylon Johnson or another starter goes down, Ben Johnson could spend Sundays trying to outscore a structural problem.

Steelers are running out of healthy safeties

Pittsburgh placed DeShon Elliott on injured reserve because of a knee issue, ruling him out for at least four games.

Jaquan Brisker is expected to start, but he also missed time and played little during the preseason. That leaves veteran Rayshawn Jenkins and rookie Robert Spears-Jennings as the other primary options. Jalen Ramsey could shift from nickel cornerback to safety, although doing so would merely move the shortage somewhere else.

The Steelers built a defense designed to keep games manageable. That becomes much harder when one additional injury could force a rookie or practice-squad elevation into a major role.

Texans’ rebuilt offensive line is being tested immediately

Houston spent the offseason attempting to improve the protection around C.J. Stroud. Before the new line could play a meaningful snap together, starting right tackle Braden Smith suffered an injury expected to sideline him for four to six weeks.

Veteran Trent Brown can replace him, at least in theory. Brown has also struggled to remain healthy and turns 33 during the season. If he misses time, Houston will be digging deeper into a unit that was supposed to become more stable, not less.

The Texans have enough talent to contend in the AFC. They do not have enough proven offensive-line depth to feel comfortable about Stroud absorbing another season of unnecessary punishment.

Every contender loses starters. The good ones survive it. Washington, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Houston may be one more bad medical update away from discovering that they cannot.