The Pittsburgh Steelers made the signing of veteran safety Jabrill Peppers official Wednesday, and with it came a flurry of other moves.
Along with the addition of Peppers, cornerback James Pierre was signed from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. In the corresponding moves, the Steelers placed inside linebacker Malik Harrison and quarterback Skylar Thompson on Injured Reserve, and signed veteran quarterback Logan Woodside to their practice squad.
Peppers’ addition comes after standout strong safety DeShon Elliott sustained a knee injury in the Steelers’ season-opening win over the New York Jets. Elliott was initially ruled doubtful to return, but was later announced as out by the team, forcing Chuck Clark into action.
According to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, Elliott suffered an MCL sprain and will miss a few weeks, with the goal to return for Week 4 in Dublin, Ireland, against the Minnesota Vikings.
Harrison suffered a knee injury in the season opener, while Thompson suffered a hamstring injury late last week and was listed as questionable for the Jets matchup.
It seems likely that the Steelers will designate to return both Harrison and Thompson at some point this season.
Pierre was elevated to the active roster ahead of the season opener, and he served as a key special teams player for the Black and Gold. Now, he’s back on the active roster and should remain an important piece for special teams coordinator Danny Smith.
Peppers is just 29 years old and was a surprise cut by the New England Patriots ahead of final roster cuts.
Last season with New England, Peppers played just six games, but recorded 40 tackles, two tackles for loss and one interception. Peppers has played in 99 NFL games with 85 starts and has recorded 511 tackles, 30 tackles for loss, seven interceptions, eight fumble recoveries and six forced fumbles.
He is an athletic safety who does his best work around the line of scrimmage. That makes him a good depth piece for the Steelers behind guys like Elliott and Clark, who play similar styles.
Coming out of Michigan in the 2017 NFL Draft, Peppers was heavily connected to the Steelers under then-GM Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin. The duo attended Michigan Pro Day and got a great look at him, but were unable to select him as he went No. 25 overall to the Cleveland Browns.
Colbert reportedly “loved” Peppers and would have taken him. But things worked out perfectly for the Steelers as they landed T.J. Watt at No. 30 overall that year.
Peppers spent two years with the Browns before being part of the trade that landed WR Odell Beckham Jr. from the New York Giants in 2019. He played three seasons with the Giants before spending three seasons with the Patriots.
Woodside returning to the practice squad with Thompson injured isn’t much of a surprise. Though he really struggled in the preseason, he has a great deal of familiarity with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. He can serve as the Steelers’ emergency QB3 behind Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph while Thompson recovers.
Rookie quarterback Will Howard remains on Injured Reserve, too, so the Steelers needed a body at the position, and Woodside was the most logical solution there.
