The Pittsburgh Steelers waived veteran cornerback Tre Flowers on Monday to create a spot on the active 53-man roster for wide receiver D.K. Metcalf. But Flowers wasn’t gone very long.
The Steelers announced Wednesday the team has brought back Flowers on the practice squad. The cornerback will be eligible to play in Pittsburgh’s postseason matchup against the Houston Texans on Monday.
The Steelers originally signed Flowers to their 53-man roster on December 25. The cornerback played in one game for Pittsburgh — the Week 17 matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
Flowers lined up for two special teams snaps in the Browns matchup. He didn’t appear on defense.
Flowers was a healthy scratch on the team’s inactive list during Week 18 versus the Baltimore Ravens.
There are unlimited practice squad elevations for each player during the NFL postseason. So, even though he’s not on the active roster, Flowers could dress in any and/or all playoff games the Steelers play in to end this season.
That is, as long as he remains on the team’s practice squad.
In eight NFL seasons, Flowers has posted 287 combined tackles, including four tackles for loss. He also has registered 22 pass defenses and four interceptions in 98 games.
Flowers started 44 of those 98 contests.
Steelers Bring Back Tre Flowers
It isn’t a huge surprise Flowers found his way back to the Steelers.
The team had to release someone with Metcalf’s reinstatement Monday. Despite a short stint in Pittsburgh, Flowers appeared to be the unlucky choice rather than a player the Steelers didn’t care to lose.
The team also opened a practice squad spot Tuesday, paving the way for Flowers to return if he cleared waivers. That officially happened Wednesday.
Flowers will bring more secondary depth and experience. Going forward, it will be from the practice squad rather than the active roster. But because of practice squad rules in the NFL postseason, the Steelers aren’t limited in how much they can use Flowers for the rest of 2025-26.
He’s started just three games over the past four seasons. But Flowers served as a starter in 30 contests during his first two NFL campaigns from 2018-19. That was after the Seattle Seahawks selected him at No. 146 overall in the fifth round of the 2018 draft.
Flowers also started seven games for Seattle in 2020.
After leaving the Seahawks, Flowers appeared in regular season games for the Cincinnati Bengals, Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions before signing with Pittsburgh. This season, Flowers played two games for the Lions in October.
Steelers Waived Offensive Tackle David Sharpe to Bring Back Flowers
As previously mentioned, the Steelers created a path for Flowers to return. They did that by releasing offensive tackle David Sharpe from the practice squad Tuesday.
Sharpe joined the Steelers practice squad about two weeks before Flowers did. When he signed with Pittsburgh, the team was dealing with significant injury issues at tackle.
That situation has stabilized itself with strong play from Dylan Cook at left tackle. Over the past month, veteran Andrus Peat has also returned and the Steelers added Jack Driscoll to the active roster.
Therefore, entering the matchup with Houston, it made sense for the Steelers to drop Sharpe to bring back Flowers.
The Steelers will host the Texans in the final wild card matchup of the NFL’s opening 2026 playoff weekend. The game will kick off at 8:15 pm ET on Monday night, January 12.
Steelers Bring Back Veteran CB Released After D.K. Metcalf Return