The Pittsburgh Steelers are signing former West Virginia OT/OG Doug Nester to their practice squad, per his agent Brett Tessler.
Nester is a big body at 6066 and 308 pounds. He spent time with the Minnesota Vikings this preseason, and per Tessler, he had multiple practice squad offers. He played in 57 games with 52 starts at West Virginia and participated in the East-West Shrine Bowl.
During the preseason, he played 51 snaps, all at right tackle, with the Vikings. He was teammates with Zach Frazier at West Virginia, and during Frazier’s NFL Scouting Combine media session, he made sure to mention that he thought Nester, as well as Steelers CB Beanie Bishop Jr., were deserving of Combine invites.
“I feel like Beanie and Doug Nester should be here. That’s just my opinion. I feel like Beanie had a great season and Doug, too. I feel like they should both be here,” Frazier said back in March.
The Steelers also had interest in Nester pre-draft, as he told Justin Melo of The Draft Network that they were one of the teams he met with during the process.
NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero reported the signing of WR Brandon Johnson.
Johnson spent the last two seasons as a member of the Denver Broncos, catching 25 passes for 326 yards and five touchdowns. He was cut yesterday as the team trimmed down its roster, and now will join Pittsburgh’s practice squad as some added depth.
Johnson has ties with Steelers wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni, who recruited him to play college football at Tennessee and later coached him with the Denver Broncos, per the Denver Gazette. His father is former Major League Baseball catcher Charles Johnson.
After spending five years at Tennessee, Johnson finished his collegiate career at UCF, where he had 38 receptions for 565 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2021. He measured in at 6023 and 195 pounds and ran a 4.61 40-yard dash at UCF’s Pro Day in 2022.
Per Mike Klis of 9News in Denver, the Broncos tried to bring Johnson back to their practice squad, but he chose to go to Pittsburgh due to his connections with Azzanni and QB Russell Wilson, who spent the last two seasons with Denver.
Pittsburgh is carrying five receivers on its 53-man roster, but with Roman Wilson’s status for Week 1 in doubt after an ankle injury, there could be a chance for Johnson to play a role with the Steelers and contribute at some point this season, potentially early.
