Steelers Bring Back Rookie WR, Waive Promising CB

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On Tuesday the Pittsburgh Steelers signed wide receiver Jaquarii Roberson to the practice squad, bringing him back a week after releasing him to make room for linebacker Ryan Anderson.

Roberson — 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds — originally joined the team’s practice squad on Sept. 7. He’s an undrafted rookie free agent who first entered the NFL with the Cowboys, but was waived during the preseason when Dallas cut its roster to 80 players.

Business ‘Was Booming’ for Jaquarii Roberson at Wake Forest

And while Roberson has yet to prove himself worthy of a regular-season role in the NFL, he was stellar during his four seasons at Wake Forest.

“Production was booming for Roberson in the ACC,” wrote Kyle Youmans after the 24-year-old joined the Cowboys in May, utilizing a word that former Steelers receiver Antonio Brown has frequently invoked when describing his prowess on and off the field.

Roberson appeared in a total of 40 games for the Demon Deacons and caught a total of 146 passes for 2,158 yards and 17 touchdowns. More notably, still, he scored eight touchdowns in each of his last two college seasons and holds the school’s single-season record for receiving yards per game, having averaged 102.9 yards per contest in 2020.

With Roberson having been re-signed, the Steelers currently have two wide receivers on the practice squad, with the other being Cody White.

Cody is the son of Steelers director of pro scouting Sheldon White, who was hired on May 25, 2022, shortly after Andy Weidl was onboarded as assistant general manager.

Steelers Waive Cornerback Mark Gilbert

To make room for Roberson on the practice squad, the Steelers waived cornerback Mark Gilbert, who signed to Pittsburgh’s practice squad on Sept. 1. Though Gilbert’s (second) stay in Pittsburgh was brief, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he is brought back later in the year, as he had a modicum of success with the Detroit Lions last season.

Recall that Gilbert — who is the cousin of former four-time first-team All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis and the nephew of former No. 3 overall pick Sean Gilbert — originally joined the Steelers on May 7, 2021.

Though he failed to make Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster out of training camp he subsequently signed to the practice squad, where he remained until the Lions poached him on October 12 of last year.

He went on to appear in eight games for Detroit and played a total of 47 defensive snaps and 27 special teams snaps, according to Pro Football Reference. During that time, he was credited with three tackles and one pass breakup. He also forced a Diontae Johnson fumble during overtime of the Lions-Steelers game last November, which helped a then-winless Lions team preserve a 16-16 tie.

With Gilbert now off the practice squad, the Steelers have just one cornerback among the current assemblage of 16 players. That would be Josh Jackson, a 2018 2nd-round pick of the Green Bay Packers (Iowa) who was signed on Labor Day and has 15 regular-season starts on his résumé.

Steelers Injury Update

The Steelers come into this coming Thursday night’s game much healthier than the Browns. Pittsburgh had just one player on its first injury report of the week, that being inside linebacker Devin Bush. Cleveland listed eight players on its injury report, including former Steelers tight end Jesse James, who signed with the Browns shortly after working out for the team on Sept. 1.