The Pittsburgh Steelers had an open spot on the 53-man roster and have now filled it with OLB Ade Ogundeji. They have also elevated two from the practice squad, including RB Jonathan Ward and WR Brandon Johnson, according to a release by the team.
Ogundeji just spent last week on the 53-man roster while OLB depth was running thin after being on the practice squad since late August. Mike Tomlin reportedly used Robert Spillane’s story as motivation last week to stress the importance of making the most of your opportunities as a depth player, and Ogundeji appears to have done that.
In his lone game with the Steelers he didn’t log any tackles, but he did have one pass defensed. Now he will help fill in behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith alongside Jeremiah Moon until Nick Herbig returns from his hamstring issue. He was released from the roster following the game and then signed back to the practice squad, and now gets promoted to the active roster once again.
As for the other two, Ward and Johnson were both elevated ahead of the Steelers’ Week 5 game against the Dallas Cowboys. Ward was also elevated last week against the Raiders. Johnson has been elevated twice and Ward three times. Per the NFL practice squad rules, players can be elevated a maximuim of three times. They would need to be signed to the 53-man roster at that point if the Steelers wished to continue suiting them up on game day.
Ward is a veteran of the league, but he came to the Steelers during the rookie tryouts as a veteran exception. He impressed throughout training camp and is also a good special teams player in addition to being a solid running back. With Cordarrelle Patterson still on the mend, he will be the third running back after Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren.
Johnson provides an additional option at receiver. He also has a rapport with Russell Wilson having been with the Denver Broncos for both seasons Wilson was there. He had one reception on one target for nine yards against the Cowboys. His elevation is a bad sign for rookie WR Roman Wilson, who is was added to the injury report this week with a new hamstring injury after debuting last week against the Raiders.
