The Pittsburgh Steelers wasted no time signing 16 players to the practice squad following roster cutdowns. On Tuesday, all 32 NFL clubs were forced to be roster compliant by the 4 pm ET deadline. Less than 24 hours later, the Steelers' initial practice squad was already set.
Although they had the opportunity to search for talent outside the organization, the Steelers quickly signed 16 of their best players who failed to make the 53-man roster, including some notable names that many thought would be on the field on Sundays. Here's our first look at the Pittsburgh Steelers' practice squad.
Pittsburgh Steelers' 2025 practice squad signings:
POSITION | PLAYER |
|---|---|
RB | Trey Sermon |
RB | Lew Nichols |
WR | Robert Woods |
WR | Ke'Shawn Williams |
WR | Max Hurleman |
TE | JJ Galbereath |
OT | Dylan Cook |
OL | Steven Jones |
DL | Kyler Baugh |
EDGE/DL | DeMarvin Leal |
EDGE | Julius Welschof |
CB | Beanie Bishop Jr. |
CB | James Pierre |
CB | Daryl Porter Jr. |
DB | D'Shawn Jamison |
S | Sebastian Castro |
The Steelers retained a pair of running backs who had impressive summers—Trey Sermon and Lew Nichols—by bringing them back to the practice squad. Both backs turned heads with their preseason performances, and it looks like one of the two will get the call if and when injuries occur in Pittsburgh's backfield.
Pittsburgh elected to bring back three wide receivers, with the most notable name being Robert Woods. The long-time veteran narrowly missed the 53-man roster, but his veteran presence will be welcome if the Steelers suffer injuries in 2025. Joining him are Max Hurleman and Ke'Shawn Williams, both of whom had strong summers in Pittsburgh.
The front office decided to keep just one practice squad tight end, JJ Galbreath, while keeping two reserve offensive linemen: Dylan Cook and Steven Jones. Both Cook and Jones have some guard/tackle flexibility.
On defense, the Steelers signed defensive tackle Kyler Baugh. One of the biggest returning faces is 2022 third-round pick DeMarvin Leal. Leal was released before his fourth NFL season, but he could be the first man off the bench if injuries strike on Pittsburgh's defensive line. The German native Julius Welschof is the other edge rusher on the practice squad (and a roster exemption thanks to the International Player Pathway program).
The Steelers have some strong options in the secondary now on the practice squad. Beanie Bishop Jr. drew national buzz after his release, as the 2024 undrafted player earned four interceptions and was Pittsburgh's starting slot cornerback in his rookie season last year. Joining him is NFL veteran James Pierre, who can contribute on special teams if called upon.
Pittsburgh also left room on the practice squad for defensive backs Daryl Porter Jr. and D'Shawn Jamison, as well as former Iowa standout safety Sebastian Castro.