The Pittsburgh Steelers are signing TE MyCole Pruitt, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports. As Fowler notes, Pruitt reunites with Steelers OC Arthur Smith, who worked together in Tennessee and Atlanta.
Per NFL Insider Aaron Wilson, it’s a one-year deal for Pruitt. Further financial details weren’t immediately disclosed.
Dave Bryan tweeted it’s likely a one-year, veteran benefit contract. If so, it’d be a similar structure given to WRs Quez Watkins and Van Jefferson along with QB Kyle Allen.
Pruitt, who turned 32 last month, was originally a fifth round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2015. He signed with the Tennessee Titans in 2018 and worked with Smith in his two years as the Titans’ offensive coordinator, 2019 and 2020. Pruitt then signed with the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, spending the last two years with them. Smith was also Pruitt’s tight ends coach in 2018, Pruitt’s first year with the team and the year before Smith replaced Matt LaFleur as Tennessee’s offensive coordinator.
In 2023, Pruitt saw minimal work in the passing game, catching 9 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. His 2022 was marginally better, 16 receptions for 150 yards and 4 touchdowns. One of those scores came against the Steelers, a 7-yard touchdown in a 19-16 Pittsburgh victory. You can watch that play here.
Here’s his score from 2023, a catch down the seam against the New York Jets.
And another 2022 touchdown, a physical and high-effort play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He came out of the draft as an impressive athlete. Hailing from Southern Illinois, he weighed in at 6022, 251 pounds at the NFL Combine, running a 4.58 4o with a 38-inch vertical. Of course, that was nearly a decade ago, and his speed and athleticism has diminished.
For his career, Pruitt’s appeared in 109 games, making 39 starts. He has 71 receptions for 748 yards and 12 touchdowns.
MyCole Pruitt can play a bit on special teams, logging 122 snaps last year on that unit. He saw 402 snaps on offense, primarily functioning as a blocker. Smith’s offenses are usually heavily populated by tight ends, a trend that will continue in Pittsburgh. The Steelers now have Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Connor Heyward, Rodney Williams, and Pruitt. Heyward could potentially see additional time at fullback, given that Smith’s offenses like to use them, though he typically looks for true lead blockers.
