Steelers, David DeCastro Agree To Extension
5:09pm: DeCastro’s deal includes a $16MM signing bonus, tweets CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora.
4:33pm: The Steelers and guard David DeCastro have agreed to a contract extension, reports Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). It’s a five-year, $50MM deal, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN, meaning DeCastro will be under Steelers control through the 2021 campaign. DeCastro now joins the Raiders’ Kelechi Osemele and the Bears’ Kyle Long as the only guards in the league with pacts that average $10MM or more per season.
Before receiving his massive contract, DeCastro established himself as one of the core pieces of the Steelers’ offensive line during his first four NFL seasons. DeCastro, a first-round pick in 2012, has ranked among Pro Football Focus’ 20 best guards in each of the previous three years, during which he started all but one game. He’s also coming off a year in which he earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections for the first time.
The ex-Stanford Cardinal is slated to be on the Steelers’ books this year for $8.07MM. That’s the cost of the fifth-year option that was included in the 24th overall pick’s rookie deal. His new accord will kick in next season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Steelers To Sign David DeCastro To Extension
The Steelers and guard David DeCastro are close to a contract extension, a source tells ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano (Twitter link).
DeCastro, 26, has established himself as one of the core pieces of the Steelers’ offensive line since the team used a first-round pick on him in 2012. Starting in all but one game over the the last three seasons, he’s coming off a year in which he earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections for the first time. DeCastro was slated to be on the Steelers’ books this season for $8.07MM before being out of contract but the team wanted to make sure he was locked in for longer.
Pro Football Focus has graded DeCastro as one of the league’s 20 best guards in each of the last three years. PFF graded DeCastro as the league’s 14th-best guard in 2013, 18th in 2014, and 15th at his position last year with roughly equal grades for his pass blocking and run blocking.
Graziano notes that DeCastro’s agent, Tom Condon, also represents Drew Brees, who just signed an extension with the Saints. Last year, Condon clients Eli Manning, Luke Kuechly, and Anthony Castonzo all signed extensions just before the start of the season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Steelers Sign David Cobb To Practice Squad
WEDNESDAY, 9;25am: The Steelers officially announced that Cobb is now a member of their practice squad.
TUESDAY, 9:15pm: The Steelers plan to sign former Titans running back David Cobb to their practice squad, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Pittsburgh put Cobb through a workout yesterday.
Cobb, 23, was a fifth-round pick in last year’s draft. The ex-Minnesota Golden Gopher picked up 146 yards on 52 carries, good for a paltry 2.7 YPC, in seven games as a rookie.
With star Le’Veon Bell set to miss the first three games of the season because of a suspension, the Steelers are in search of backfield depth to work behind DeAngelo Williams. As of now, Fitzgerald Toussaint and former Ram Daryl Richardson are their top options behind Williams. Toussaint only has 24 carries to his name, though, and Richardson – the more experienced of the two – hasn’t appeared in a game since 2013.
Pittsburgh previously worked out Karlos Williams, though he’s suspended for the season’s first four games and wouldn’t be able to help fill Bell’s void.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Steelers To Work Out David Cobb
The Steelers will work out free agent running back David Cobb on Tuesday, tweets Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Pittsburgh will become the fourth team to audition Cobb, who visited with the Patriots, Chiefs, and Jets after the Titans waived him last week.
Cobb, 23, was a fifth-round pick in last year’s draft. The ex-Minnesota Golden Gopher picked up 146 yards on 52 carries, good for a paltry 2.7 YPC, in seven games as a rookie.
With star Le’Veon Bell set to miss the first three games of the season because of a suspension, the Steelers are in search of backfield depth to work behind DeAngelo Williams. As of now, Fitzgerald Toussaint and former Ram Daryl Richardson are their top options behind Williams. Toussaint only has 24 carries to his name, though, and Richardson – the more experienced of the two – hasn’t appeared in a game since 2013.
Pittsburgh previously worked out Karlos Williams, though he’s suspended for the season’s first four games and wouldn’t be able to help fill Bell’s void.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC North
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Ravens, Bengals, Browns, and Steelers are noted below.
Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.
Here are Sunday’s AFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed to practice squad:
- LB Brennen Beyer (Link via Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun)
- WR Keenan Reynolds
- TE Daniel Brown (link via Zrebiec)
- C Matt Skura (link via Zrebiec)
- OT Blaine Clausell (link via Zrebiec)
- DE Kapron Lewis-Moore (link via Zrebiec)
- RB Stephen Houston (link via Zrebiec)
- QB David Fales (Link via Zrebiec)
Cincinnati Bengals
- Claimed:
- QB Jeff Driskel (Link via Adam Schefter)
- Waived:
- LB P.J. Dawson
- Placed on IR:
- Signed:
- CB Chykie Brown
- OL Trey Hopkins
- Signed to practice squad:
- DE Ryan Brown
- RB Tra Carson (Link via Jim Owczarski of the Enquirer)
- DT David Dean
- CB Darius Hillary
- WR Jake Kumerow (Link via Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com)
- TE Matt Lengel
- CB Tony McRae
- G Alex Redmond
- WR Alonzo Russell
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed:
- RB George Atkinson
- DB Briean Boddy-Calhoun
- DB Marcus Burley
- DE Tyrone Holmes
- LB Corey Lemonier (Link via Florio)
- Waived/released:
- DB Trey Caldwell
- LB Cam Johnson
- RB Raheem Mostert
- RB Terrell Watson
- DB Rahim Moore
- Signed to practice squad:
- Connor Hamlett (Link via Nate Ulrich of The Akron Beacon Journal)
- OL Dan France
- WR Darius Jennings
- OL Kaleb Johnson
- QB Kevin Hogan (Link via Ian Rapoport)
- DT Gabe Wright (Link via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com)
- OL Anthony Fabiano (Link via Cabot)
- DB Ed Reynolds (Link via Cabot)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Placed on IR:
- LB Bud Dupree (story)
- Signed:
- LB Steven Johnson (story)
- Signed to practice squad:
- DL Johnny Maxey (link via Aaron Wilson)
- OLB Travis Feeney (link via Jeremy Fowler)
- RB Brandon Brown-Dukes
- RB Cameron Stingily
- WR Demarcus Ayers
- WR Cobi Hamilton
- TE Rashaun Allen
- OT Matt Feiler
- DE Caushaud Lyons
- CB Al-Hajj Shabazz
Steelers Place Bud Dupree On IR
3:27pm: Dupree had an operation to repair a core muscle tear, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who adds that Dupree is a candidate to return off IR later this year.
3:08pm: The Steelers announced that they’ve placed linebacker Bud Dupree on injured reserve, meaning he won’t play during the 2016 season. In his stead, the club has signed linebacker Steven Johnson.
Dupree, 23, was Pittsburgh’s first-round pick in last year’s draft. In his rookie campaign, Dupree played on about half of the club’s defensive snaps, splitting time at outside linebacker with James Harrison, Arthur Moats, and Jarvis Jones. He appeared in all 16 games, starting five, and picked up 17 tackles and four sacks. A groin injury, however, will ensure that Dupree doesn’t see the field again until 2017.
Johnson, meanwhile, was signed by the Steelers over the offseason, but was released this weekend as part of final cutdowns. He’s spent time with the Broncos and Titans in four NFL seasons, appearing in 57 games during that time.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Waiver Wire Priority For All 32 NFL Teams
Yesterday was the 53-man roster deadline, but the madness will continue today as teams pick through the waiver pile for talented discards. Priority is dictated by the reverse standings with tiebreakers where necessary, which is to say that it will be the same as the 2016 draft order before all the trades. Unlike your fantasy league’s waiver wire, a team does not go to the back of the list upon making a successful claim. That means that the league’s worst teams from 2015 have a significant advantage today as they make late roster additions.
Here is the complete waiver priority order:
1. Titans
2. Browns
3. Chargers
4. Cowboys
5. Jaguars
6. Ravens
7. 49ers
8. Dolphins
9. Buccaneers
10. Giants
11. Bears
12. Saints
13. Eagles
14. Raiders
15. Rams
16. Lions
17. Falcons
18. Colts
19. Bills
20. Jets
21. Redskins
22. Texans
23. Vikings
24. Bengals
25. Seahawks
26. Packers
27. Steelers
28. Chiefs
29. Patriots
30. Cardinals
31. Panthers
32. Broncos
Steelers Visit With RaShaun Allen
- Tight end RaShaun Allen took a visit with the Steelers, per Wilson (Twitter link).
Steelers Trim Roster To 53
The Steelers have reduced their roster to the league-mandated 53 players.
The following players have been cut:
- DT Lavon Hooks (Twitter link via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com)
- RB Brandon Brown–Dukes (Twitter link via Fowler)
- OG Shahbaz Ahmed
- OL Antoine Everett (Twitter link via Fowler)
- OL Matt Feiler (Twitter link via Fowler)
- OLB Travis Feeney (Twitter link via Fowler)
- DB Ray Vinopal (Twitter link via Fowler)
- DB Montell Garner (Twitter link via Fowler)
- WR DeMarcus Ayers
- WR Cobi Hamilton
- WR Marcus Tucker
- RB Cameron Stingily
- OL Wade Hansen
- CB Doran Grant
- CB Al-Hajj Shabazz
- CB Donald Washington
- DL Caushaud Lyons
- DL Johnny Maxey
- LB Steven Johnson
- LB Jermauria Rasco
- QB Bryn Renner
- TE Paul Lang (waived/injured)
As Fowler observes, the Steelers’ recent wave of offensive lineman cuts could be good news for B.J. Finney, who came into today firmly on the roster bubble. Feiler, like Feeney, is a practice squad candidate.
Hooks, an Ole Miss product, was signed by the Packers as a UDFA following the 2015 draft, but Green Bay cut him last August as part of the 75-man cutdown. He caught on with the Steelers in February, and at least made it to the final cutdown day, so that qualifies as progress.
Ahmed was part of the Falcons’ crop of UDFAs this year but was waived by Atlanta last month. The Temple product made the switch from defensive lineman to offensive lineman during his junior year, and he started 12 of 13 games at left guard for the feel-good Owls last year.
Rory Parks contributed to this post
Browns Trade CB Justin Gilbert To Steelers
1:10pm: The Browns will receive a 2018 sixth-rounder for Gilbert, per a club announcement.
12:44pm: We have not just a trade alert, but an intra-divisional trade alert. The Browns are trading former first-round cornerback Justin Gilbert to the Steelers, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Gilbert, whom the Browns chose eighth overall in the 2014 draft, is one of five first-rounders Cleveland used from 2012-14. None of the players they chose are currently on their roster, as Field Yates of ESPN tweets.
An ex-Oklahoma State Cowboy, Gilbert struggled mightly as a member of the Browns, with whom he appeared in 23 of 32 possible regular-season games and made only three starts. Just nine of those appearances and one start came last year for Gilbert, who amassed 10 tackles and failed to record an interception.
Still only 24, Gilbert will now join contending Pittsburgh, where he’ll attempt to realize his vast potential. The Steelers already have a couple of recent high picks among their top corners in the form of two 2016 selections – first-rounder Artie Burns and second-rounder Sean Davis. William Gay and Ross Cockrell are likely to start, as Roster Resource shows.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.