The Pittsburgh Steelers had a pretty deep roster before the 2026 NFL Draft. Then, the team selected 10 prospects in the draft, giving the roster even more depth. That doesn’t leave a lot of room for undrafted free agents, such as tight end Lake McRee and defensive back Devan Boykin, to make the roster.
Steelers Depot’s Josh Carney, though, argued McRee has the best shot at a roster spot of the team’s six undrafted free agents.
“Coming out of USC, Lake McRee has a real shot to carve out a role,” wrote Carney. “Though he has a length injury history and isn’t much of a blocker, he’s a legitimate move TE, one who could be an adequate replacement for Freiermuth were he to go down with an injury.”
Over five seasons at USC, McRee registered 97 catches, 1,154 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 51 games. Last year, McRee posted career highs of 30 receptions, 450 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
What TE Lake McRee Will Bring to NFL
The former USC tight end isn’t a good blocker. That’s the major reason why he went unselected in the 2026 NFL Draft.
But he brings pass-catching upside, which might be attractive to the Steelers in a backup role.
“Combination tight end who makes up for his lack of ideal size with his ability to get open and make combat catches without flinching,” wrote NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein. “McRee runs leveraged routes and finds a way to separate at break points.
“He’s instinctive in space and adds unexpected yardage with route adjustments. He’s fearless into contact but needs to improve spatial awareness to prevent taking unnecessary punishment.
“Fairly willing but needs to get stronger for NFL blocking duties.”
McRee’s injury history was another negative against him during the draft process. Carney described McRee’s past injury resume as “lengthy.”
But there’s less risk with the injury-prone tight end if he’s a TE3, and he could bring more upside to the Steelers offense than other tight end candidates for that role.
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Carney ranked all six undrafted free agents in Pittsburgh based on the likelihood of each earning a roster spot. It’s not a coincidence McRee and fellow tight end Chamon Metayer were Carney’s top two players on the list.
While the Steelers have addressed holes throughout the roster, tight end is one area where they could use more depth.
“On a roster featuring Darnell Washington and Pat Freiermuth as the clear-cut No. 1 and No. 2 TEs in Pittsburgh, there’s a need for a No. 3 for the Steelers under first-year head coach Mike McCarthy,” wrote Carney.
“Last season, the Steelers were exceptionally deep at TE with Washington Freiermuth, Jonnu Smith and Connor Heyward. Smith and Heyward are now gone. While the Steelers did draft Indiana’s Riley Nowakowski in the fifth round, he’s projected as more of a fullback, so the TE3 need remains.”
Besides Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington and the undrafted rookies (along with Riley Nowakowski) the only other tight end currently on the Steelers roster is J.J. Galbreath. He was an undrafted rookie himself last year and has never played in the NFL.
It’s likely head coach Mike McCarthy will prefer the tight ends he helped sign this offseason, McRee and Metayer, over Galbreath.
The Steelers will get their first chance to see McRee and the other first-year players on their roster at the team’s rookie minicamp. The Steelers will hold their rookie minicamp from May 8-10.
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