Though the new league year kicks off at 4 PM/EST today when outside free agents can officially sign, scores of moves have already been made around the NFL. Pittsburgh’s reportedly agreed to terms with two players in ILB Malik Harrison and RB Kenneth Gainwell with reports about the team also being set to sign CB Darius Slay, though he’s not a free agent and other reporters have disputed it.
Despite the top names being off the board, there’s still a handful of free agents the Steelers could still pursue. Below is a list of names that fit. For redundancy’s sake, I’m excluding the ones who appeared on my offensive and defensive free agent wish lists. I’m also going to leave quarterback off the list until there’s more clarity on who the team’s No. 1 will be. That could influence the type of passer they target to be the backup.
OFFENSE
FB Adam Prentice
The fullback market was predictably limited and even though Kyle Juszczyk is now available, Prentice makes the most sense. He can lead block and play on special teams, two things the Steelers would covet. He spent the past four years in New Orleans, logging nearly 600 special teams snaps. That included a blocked punt to close out 2024, though a botched snap certainly made it easier for him.
With over 600 snaps on offense but just 17 touches, he’s a blocker first, second, and third, but there’s value as a niche player to clear the way in short-yardage situations. That’s an area Pittsburgh was miserable in last year. He won’t be expensive to sign.
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Pittsburgh wants playmakers. That’s why it traded for DK Metcalf and, to a lesser but similar degree, added Gainwell. Valdes-Scantling is a vertical, big-play receiver through and through. He boasts a career 17.4-yards per catch and last year, averaged 22.6-yards on 17 receptions for the New Orleans Saints. That included four touchdowns.
He is 30 and you wonder how much longer that speed will play but this would be a cheap addition to serve a big-play purpose.
WR Tyler Lockett
No matter if Russell Wilson or Aaron Rodgers is the Steelers’ quarterback, Lockett fits. The history with Wilson, the sure hands and good IQ for Rodgers. Lockett isn’t the potent threat he was early in his Seattle career, but he would find soft spots against zone underneath and move the sticks. Nearly 75 percent of his 2024 receptions went for first downs.
OL Fred Johnson
My initial anticipation was Johnson would have a market as a relatively young offensive lineman with experience. Maybe that still happens. But perhaps Pittsburgh could swoop in to sign him as a top and versatile backup. A former undrafted free agent who first signed with the Steelers, he saw extensive playing time at both tackle spots last year. His Eagles teammates and the media regard him as a great locker room presence, too.
There’s still an o-line tax to pay but with less draft capital and a lot of youth at tackle in Broderick Jones and Troy Fautanu, the Steelers need a vet. It’s far from a great signing but someone should be added pre-draft.
OL Mehki Becton
If Pittsburgh wants to make a bigger swing for the fences from the same Eagles offensive line, Becton remains an option. Reviving career after failing in New York, he made the transition from tackle to guard and flourished. A mountain of a man, he displaces defenders in the run game and is hard to get around in pass protection. Signing him means Mason McCormick is headed to the bench but that would also give Pittsburgh excellent depth with the possibility of McCormick replacing Isaac Seumalo in 2026.
Defense
NT Greg Gaines
Pittsburgh’s yet to add defensive line help and lightened the room by dumping Larry Ogunjobi. Gaines is a plugger in the middle who could kick Keeanu Benton out to left defensive end and absorb those snaps left by Ogunjobi.
Gaines is still in his 20s, has shown some pass-rush production with enough volume (4.5 sacks in 2021, 4 sacks in 2022 as a full-time starter) and was part of a Buccaneers front that finished top 10 last season in all the main run defense categories.
DL Levi Onwuzurike
Shorter than ideal, Onwuzurike makes up for it with good length. Battling back from a serious 2022 back injury, he was one of the few Lions defenders to stay healthy a year ago, playing in 16 games with 10 starts. He finished the year with 28 tackles and while he registered just 1.5 sacks, he got pressure with 13 QB hits.
Pro Football Focus graded him top 40 in run defense, pass rush, and overall defensive grade. Onwuzurike just turned 27, giving him several years of quality play left.
DL Jerry Tillery
A first-round pick who didn’t meet expectations, he could be the new Isaiahh Loudermilk. Tillery comes out of central casting for a Steelers defensive end, measuring in at 6-6, 295 pounds with 34 1/4-inch arms in the 2019 NFL Draft. Tillery has bounced around the last two years but started 11 games for the Minnesota Vikings a year ago. He failed to record a sack but would be an economical signing and is still just 28.
He can provide rotational base-end snaps and also made a special teams impact with two blocked kicks in 2024.
DL/EDGE Charles Omenihu
Bit of a tweener who could play in sub-packages or as a stand-up linebacker. Limited to just six games in 2024, he’s just two years removed from a seven-sack campaign with the Chiefs in 2023. He also perked up in the 2024 playoffs, recording a sack against the Buffalo Bills and posting nine tackles (three for a loss), a sack, and pass deflection during the Chiefs’ postseason run. He’s still just 27 and Pittsburgh needs to have quality rush depth top to bottom.
CB Darnay Holmes
Holmes is a sneaky slot option. After missing out on Nate Hobbs, Holmes could be a much cheaper fallback plan. Active at and behind the line of scrimmage with two tackles for a loss and a sack in under 300 snaps a year ago, he doesn’t turn 27 until the summer and brings special teams value. He logged nearly 200 snaps there two years ago and is experienced defensively with more than 1,700 career snaps.
CB Isaac Yiadom
I’ve been a fan of Yiadom since his days at Boston College. He’s tall with 33 NFL starts and has mostly served as a rotational backup throughout his career. He appeared in 17 games last season for the San Francisco 49ers, breaking up six passes and intercepting one. Yiadom has logged an extensive number of special teams snaps, nearly 1,500 over his career, including 250 in 2024.
Pro Football Reference charted him positively, Yiadom allowing a sub-60 percent completion percentage and 88.7 QB rating against last year. Of 91 cornerbacks with at least 40 targets, that rating ranked 43rd.
S Marcus Epps
Free agent safety depth is looking awfully thin for a team in dire need of it. So I’m stretching these names a bit. Epps was limited to just three games in 2024 after tearing his ACL, but he’ll likely be healthy for Week 1. Prior to that, he had started 37-straight games for the Raiders. He could assume the role as No. 3 safety and potential dime defender, though Cory Trice Jr. likely enters the season the favorite there assuming he’s not starting at outside corner.
Epps also has a connection to Steelers defensive backs coach Gerald Alexander, who coached Epps and the Raiders’ safeties in 2024.
