Besides reported workouts with Mariano Sori-Marin and Forrest Rhyne, who the team signed, Pittsburgh also hosted cornerback Olaijah Griffin and linebackers Tyreek Maddox-Williams and Davion Taylor. Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston passed along the information on Twitter. In addition, Pittsburgh worked out cornerbacks Javaris Davis and Nevelle Clarke today, who was reportedly signed.
It’s safe to assume these workouts happened on Saturday, given that Rhyne was signed on Sunday and it was first reported he was joining Pittsburgh on Saturday. Every player except for Griffin, who plays cornerback, is an inside linebacker, a position the Steelers were thin at following injuries to Chapelle Russell (who was waived-injured) and Nick Kwiatkoski in the team’s preseason opener on Friday.
Griffin was signed by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent following the 2021 NFL Draft. He also spent time with the New York Giants before moving to the XFL, where he played for the Seattle Sea Dragons. He measured in at 5’11 and 176 pounds at his Pro Day at USC. During his career with the Trojans, he had 67 tackles and one interception.
Maddox-Williams played linebacker at Rutgers before latching on with the Los Angeles Chargers as an undrafted free agent. He’s yet to play in an NFL game but in college the 6’2, 235-pound linebacker registered 193 total tackles, 14.5 of which were for a loss, to go along with seven pass defenses and two sacks. He was waived by the Chargers on July 29.
Taylor was released by the Philadelphia Eagles last week, but he is the most notable name as a third-round pick out of Colorado in 2020. He was drafted 103rd overall but never could make a splash with the Eagles, finishing his tenure with 51 tackles in 21 games, of which he started seven. He was waived by Philadelphia before last season and spent much of the year on their practice squad, with his last NFL snap coming in 2021.
Pittsburgh opted to sign Rhyne, but now they have more info on these guys than they had previously. All should be names to keep an eye on if further injuries impact the inside linebacker room. With the Steelers also signing cornerback Lavert Hill today and also reportedly signing Clarke, Griffin doesn’t seem to be getting a contract unless more cornerbacks are forced to miss time.
