The Pittsburgh Steelers ultimately elected to bring back defensive back Darius Rush this week after losing safety Bishop Fitzgerald to the Detroit Lions. But before that, the Steelers appeared to consider signing former Ravens safety Beau Brade.
The Steelers hosted Brade for a tryout Tuesday. According to the NFL transaction wire, Brade was one of three defensive backs to work out for the team Tuesday — the other two were Austin Brown and Dan Jackson.
Brade joined the NFL as an undrafted rookie for the Ravens in 2024. Baltimore signed him to a 3-year, $2.855 million contract with a $25,000 signing bonus after the 2024 NFL Draft.
As a rookie, Brade made the Ravens roster and played in 11 games last season. He posted three combined tackles while mostly playing on special teams.
The safety remained with the Ravens until the 2025 NFL roster deadline after training camp. After Baltimore waived him, the New York Giants claimed Brade. He played 15 games for the Giants during the 2025 campaign.
Steelers Try out Former Ravens Safety Beau Brade
If the Steelers were going to sign Brade or either of the other two defensive backs who tried out for the team Tuesday, they probably would have done that before bringing back Rush.
But depending on how the tryout went, Brade could become a target for the Steelers at some other point this season. He has NFL experience in the AFC North, particularly on special teams.
Brade received just 11 defensive snaps with the Ravens in 2024. He then lined up for only one snap on defense with the Giants last season. But he played 207 special teams snaps with Baltimore during 2024 and 193 with New York in 2025.
This past summer, Brade spent training camp with his old Ravens head coach, John Harbaugh, with the Giants. New York waived him at the August roster deadline.
Brade played college football at Maryland from 2020-23. He registered 177 combined tackles, including 9.5 for loss with 11 pass defenses, three interceptions and three forced fumbles in 42 games.
Pittsburgh Also Tried Out 2 Other Defensive Backs
Brown and Jackson were two other defensive backs the Steelers looked at Tuesday before adding Rush to the practice squad.
The Indianapolis Colts signed Brown as an undrafted free agent this past spring. The defensive back spent the summer with the Colts before getting waived at the NFL roster deadline.
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein argued Brown has traits to like.
“Brown is well-built and features good play strength. He’s an explosive athlete, but he’s missing the desired instincts in coverage, which might explain his lack of ball production,” wrote Zierlein. “He has good top-end speed and range from the hash. He’s a physical striker and can be a full-stop tackler, but inconsistent angles to the ball turn into missteps that lead to explosive plays.”
The Detroit Lions selected Jackson as a seventh-rounder in the 2025 NFL Draft. He spent his rookie season on injured reserve. This August, the Lions waived him as part of their final roster cuts.
Jackson was part of the back-to-back national championships at Georgia in 2021 and 2022.
Steelers Potentially Eyeing Ex-Ravens $2.8 Million Safety