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The Pittsburgh Steelers training camp competition at cornerback has quickly become a war of attrition.
Three days after leaving the Steelers second preseason outing with a hamstring injury, veteran CB Anthony Averett was released unexpectedly on August 20. Pittsburgh announced the cut while informing the public of several roster moves (more on that below).
Averett had something that several other members of the Steelers cornerback battle did not — a wealth of active experience.
Entering the NFL as a former fourth-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2018, the role player appeared in 51 games over five seasons. He did not log an appearance in 2023 after a training camp injury and a stint on the Detroit Lions practice squad, and his last regular season action came with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022.
With Averett and Grayland Arnold (IR) officially out of the running, undrafted rookie Beanie Bishop Jr. and sixth-round safety Ryan Watts, 2023 seventh rounder Cory Trice Jr., fourth-year pro Thomas Graham Jr. and 2023 Indianapolis Colts draft pick Darius Rush all have better odds of making the Week 1 roster.
Steelers Officially Transfer C Nate Herbig to IR & Sign LB Kyahva Tezino, 1 Other
The other aforementioned August 20 transactions included the Steelers front office officially transferring veteran center Nate Herbig to the injured reserve with a torn rotator cuff — which was first reported by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette insider Gerry Dulac on August 18 — the finalizing of the Kyahva Tezino linebacker signing and another addition in defensive lineman Marcus Haynes.
Herbig’s loss is a notable one, considering he was taking first-team reps at center for most of training camp. It’ll now be rookie Zach Frazier’s job to lose, but it’ll be interesting to see if the Steelers actively look to improve their depth at the position in the coming weeks.
The Tezino signing was first reported by NFL insider Aaron Wilson on August 19.
According to The Football Database, Tezino has suited up for three different spring football organizations since 2021. The TSL Aviators (2021), USFL Pittsburgh Maulers (2022-2023) and UFL Birmingham Stallions (2024).
The 6-foot linebacker spent two offseasons with the Maulers, registering 179 total tackles (109 solo), 3 interceptions and 2.5 sacks. This spring, he helped lead the Stallions to a championship and was credited with 66 total tackles (37 solo) and a half-sack — plus 16 postseason tackles.
He also earned a training camp opportunity with the San Francisco 49ers last summer and is now 27 years old.
Haynes is a 6-foot-4 defensive lineman that turned 26 years old in April. He has bounced around the NFL since 2023 according to Pro Football Reference but has yet to appear in a regular season game.
Steelers.com reporter Teresa Varley also noted that Haynes “played college football at Old Dominion where he appeared in 49 games, starting 21. He recorded 102 tackles, 55 of them solo stops, 22 tackles for a loss, 15 sacks, five passes defensed and four forced fumbles.”
Will Steelers Continue to Add at Cornerback Before Week 1?
With injuries popping up left and right in the secondary, the Steelers have already brought in multiple replacements. Cornerbacks Zyon Gilbert and Kiondre Thomas both joined the roster recently while safety Jalen Elliott returned after briefly being cut.
Even defensive back Kyler McMichael only signed near the start of training camp on July 30.
It remains to be seen if any of these flyers will be seriously considered for a roster spot, but the bigger question is if Pittsburgh will target a bigger name.
Assuming the Brandon Aiyuk trade dream is dead, the Steelers do have a little over $16.2 million to spend in available cap space should they need it. Might they use a portion of it to look into a veteran addition at nickel cornerback before Week 1?
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