Pittsburgh Steelers Exit Meeting: CB James Pierre
Experience: 5 Years
The Steelers opted not to re-sign James Pierre last offseason, but they had to turn back to him later on. There were multiple reasons for that, both on defense and special teams. The first domino to fall came in Week 2, but it just got worse from there.
Pierre became a special teams ace for the Steelers, so when they lost another one in Week 2 and he was available, they called him up. Tyler Matakevich went down against the Broncos, and Pierre was playing the next week. In that same game in Week 3, though, there were two more significant injuries.
The Steelers’ top backup cornerback, Cory Trice Jr., suffered an injury, giving James Pierre a defensive role. Then Ben Skowronek suffered an injury, making Pierre even more important in his old gunner role on special teams.
Pierre ended up playing 15 games, starting two, with 255 special teams snaps and 206 defensive snaps. He even managed to register a dropped pass, the receiver on a fake punt attempt. I don’t think Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith will ever let him live that down.
A former college free agent out of Florida Atlantic, James Pierre was a surprise on the Steelers’ 53-man roster. They didn’t even have training camp in 2020 because of COVID-19 restrictions, yet he showed enough to make the team. Many hoped they might have found something in him thanks to his natural traits.
Unfortunately for the Steelers and their fans, Pierre never really developed defensively. He is a player they can put on the field if they need to, but will basically only play due to injury. He did manage an interception in 2024, the third of his career, plus 23 tackles and two forced fumbles.
But they have not bent over backward for Lamar Jackson’s cousin. As a restricted free agent in 2023, the Steelers did not tender Pierre. Last year, they were content at the time to move on altogether. Will they re-sign him again, and if so, when? Considering they’ve already signed two defensive backs this offseason, I don’t think they are in any rush. But if they accidentally leave Danny Smith unattended near a phone, you never know what might happen.
The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves at home, the inevitable result of another early playoff exit. This is a repeated pattern for the organization, with no clear end in sight. As the Steelers conduct their own exit meetings, we will go down the roster conducting our own. Who should stay, and who should go, and how? Who should expect a bigger role next season, and who might deserve a new contract? We’ll explore those questions and more in these articles, part of an annual series.
