Trey Sermon

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/14/25

Here are Friday’s practice squad transactions:

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

A day after releasing Thomas to make room for Leo on the taxi squad, the Eagles have made the opposite transactions, bringing back Thomas while letting go of Leo. Sermon was waived to make room for sixth-round rookie quarterback Will Howard to come off of injured reserve, but he’ll stick around on the Steelers’ practice squad.

Steelers Activate QB Will Howard From IR

After winning the national championship in his lone season at Ohio State in 2024, quarterback Will Howard entered the NFL as a sixth-round pick of the Steelers last spring. Howard broke his hand early in training camp, though, forcing him to begin his career on injured reserve. After opening Howard’s 21-day practice window on Oct. 22, the Steelers activated the 24-year-old to their 53-man roster on Wednesday.

Taken 185th in the draft, Howard was always regarded as a developmental project for the Steelers. Even if he didn’t succumb to an injury over the summer, Howard was unlikely to see meaningful playing time this season.

Howard joined a team that brought in future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers as its new starter and the experienced Mason Rudolph as its primary backup during the offseason. Rodgers has stayed healthy during the Steelers’ 5-4 start, leaving just six snaps for Rudolph thus far.

The Steelers reportedly hope to retain Rodgers, who will turn 42 in December, next season. Rudolph is already under contract for 2026 after signing a two-year, $8MM deal. The Steelers will have plenty of time to figure out their QB setup for next year. In the meantime, they’ll get Howard back as an emergency third option.

As PFR’s IR tracker shows, Howard’s activation leaves the Steelers with five for the rest of the season. To make room for Howard, the Steelers waived running back Trey Sermon from their active roster. The former 49er, Eagle, and Colt signed a one-year pact with the Steelers last May. Sermon has appeared in four games this season, his fifth in the league, but 47 of his 48 snaps have come on special teams.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/8/25

Several teams around the NFL made tweaks to their rosters on Saturday in preparation for Sunday’s slate of games. Here are all the latest moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Commanders

Week 10 will mark the debut for both players the Chargers gave the IR-designated for return label during roster cutdowns in August. Their activations had already been accounted for, but Hand’s had not. With those three now back in the fold, the Bolts have three IR activations remaining on the season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/1/25

Here are today’s minor moves and practice squad callups for the ninth weekend of the NFL season:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

The Steelers are getting Harrison back at a crucial time. Fellow linebacker Cole Holcomb has been ruled out this weekend with an illness — as has safety Chuck Clark, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network — and Harrison should be able to reinforce the group. He has plenty of experience playing next to starter Patrick Queen from their time together in Baltimore, so perhaps he’ll be able to step in and contribute right away.

The Chargers continue to see their running backs room plagued with injury. Haskins joins Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris on injured reserve. Johnson and Patterson will suit up tomorrow to provide some depth behind lone survivor Kimani Vidal.

With Terry McLaurin once again set to miss time, Burks, the newly signed p-squad addition, will make his Washington debut. Also a newly signed p-squad addition, Lewis will make his Denver debut this weekend. If he sees game time, 2025 will officially be Lewis’ 20th season in the NFL.

After missing the last three games, Gross-Matos appeared to be close to returning to play. According to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports, the 27-year-old re-injured his hamstring at practice on Thursday and will now miss another four games.

For Leota in New Orleans, Mosby in Green Bay, Sermon in Pittsburgh, Zakelj in San Francisco, and both Proche and Watkins in Tennessee, this Sunday will be their third and final standard gameday practice squad elevation on their current deals. In order to appear in any more games after this, their respective teams will need to sign them to the active roster.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/27/25

Here are Saturday’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

With Colts cornerback Kenny Moore presumed to potentially miss a few weeks, the recent signee, Hilton, will get his opportunity to supplement the team’s secondary. He may be able to earn an official spot on the 53-man roster with an impactful game. Similarly, Cropper may be able to get into his first NFL game since going undrafted in 2023 as he gets elevated to a receiving corps that will sorely miss CeeDee Lamb.

Morris is getting called up for the third time for Jacksonville. If the Jaguars intend for him to appear in another game after this week, they’ll need to sign him to the 53-man roster.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/20/25

Here are today’s minor moves and Week 3’s standard gameday practice squad elevations:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Elevated: T Tyler McLellan

Washington Commanders

There were some eyes on whether or not the Browns would add a kicker for the weekend after Andre Szmyt needed to undergo some MRI testing, but no such moves were made and Szmyt heads into the weekend without an injury designation. The team did report a workout with veteran kicker Matthew Wright, though, per Howard Balzer of CardsWire.

The 49ers will lose some additional offensive line depth as they place their intended swing tackle, Burford, on injured reserve. Additionally, with Martinez not getting signed to the active roster, it appears that injured starter Brock Purdy will not be active as an emergency option, as was rumored a bit yesterday. Purdy should be inactive as a result.

Herbig announced his retirement at the end of July after spending a good portion of the offseason with the Commanders. The 27-year-old was coming off a 2024 season in which he missed the entirety of the year with a shoulder injury. Washington’s release of Herbig from the reserve/retired list gives him an opportunity to sign with a new team as a free agent. There’s no guarantee that he’s headed anywhere specific, but he likely initiated the transaction in order to explore his options.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC North

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BengalsBrownsRavens and Steelers moves are noted below.

Baltimore Ravens

Signed to practice squad:

Cincinnati Bengals

Signed to practice squad:

Reverted to IR:

Cleveland Browns

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Pittsburgh Steelers

Signed to practice squad:

Steelers Cut 13 Players, Set Initial 53-Man Roster

After slowly reducing their roster count over the past week, the Steelers officially got to their 53-player limit this afternoon. The Steelers announced the following transactions:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Placed on IR (designated for return):

The Steelers made a pair of relatively surprising cuts on defense. Beanie Bishop joined the Steelers as a UDFA last year and ended up getting into all 17 games (six starts), compiling 45 tackles, four interceptions, and seven passes defended. If he doesn’t get scooped up by another team, there’s a good chance he lands back on Pittsburgh’s practice squad. The same goes for DeMarvin Leal, who appeared in 28 games for the Steelers since being selected in the third round of the 2022 draft.

On offense, the team terminated the contracts of two notable veterans. Robert Woods was looking to revive his career following two quiet seasons in Houston. The former Rams standout hit new lows in 2024, finishing with career-lows in receptions (20) and receiving yards (203). The team also moved on from former 49ers draft pick Trey Sermon. The running back spent the past two seasons with the Colts, where he collected 431 yards from scrimmage in 31 games.

Steelers, RB Trey Sermon Agree To Deal

The Steelers have lined up a backfield addition deep into free agency. Pittsburgh has agreed to a one-year deal with Trey Sermon, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports.

A third-round pick of the 49ers in 2021, Sermon only lasted one season in San Francisco. He did not survive roster cuts in advance of his second NFL campaign, with the 49ers placing him on waivers. The Eagles claimed him, although that did not yield a workload of note. Sermon handled a total of just 12 snaps in Philadelphia, and he found himself on the move the following year.

Shortly after being released in the summer of 2023, Sermon inked a practice squad deal with the Colts. His debut Indianapolis campaign resulted in 160 scoreless rushing yards, but the free agent departure of Zack Moss opened the door for an increased workload. At one point, Sermon seemed to be in position to handle RB2 duties behind Jonathan TaylorIn the end, though, the Ohio State product only saw a marginal uptick in carries (56 compared to 35).

As a result, this Steelers pact will no doubt be a small commitment on Pittsburgh’s part. The Steelers leaned heavily on former first-rounder Najee Harris over the past four seasons. As many expected, Harris departed in free agency this spring, leaving Jaylen Warren atop the depth chart. The latter is attached to a second-round RFA tender for 2025, and he will look to play his way into a long-term pact with Pittsburgh or another team next offseason.

The Steelers used a third-round pick (their second selection of the draft) on running back Kaleb JohnsonThe Iowa product enjoyed a highly successful college career and he is in line to compete for a notable role alongside Warren and free agent signing Kenneth Gainwell as a rookie. Sermon, 26, could earn a place as the team’s No. 3 or 4 option in the backfield, although he does not have considerable experience on special teams (something which would likely be necessary for someone in that role to earn a roster spot).

The Steelers entered Sunday with more than $34MM in cap space, so today’s deal will not alter their other roster-building plans. Sermon will turn his attention to competing for a depth gig on his latest team during the summer.

Latest On Colts’ RB Depth

The Colts ended their standoff with Jonathan Taylor last October, assuring the running back would stick in Indy for the foreseeable future. With the former All-Pro locked in, the Colts front office had to watch as key backup Zack Moss took a starting gig with the Bengals this offseason.

Taylor has missed 13 games over the past two years, meaning the Colts RB2 should be in line for a significant role. With that in mind, ESPN’s Stephen Holder notes that veteran Trey Sermon is the “likeliest option” to take over that top backup gig following a standout performance at OTAs. Holder points out how Sermon’s “hard-running style” could be appealing to the Colts, and his familiarity with the offense gives him some leeway for the RB2 job.

The former third-round pick collected 193 yards with the 49ers as a rookie, but he was quickly squeezed out of a crowded RBs room. He spent the 2022 campaign in Philly before catching on with the Colts last year. He ended up getting into 14 games with Indy, collecting 173 yards from scrimmage.

He should see an uptick in those numbers next season, even if Taylor remains relatively healthy. The team doesn’t have many other experienced options at the position, although both Evan Hull and Tyler Goodson bring their own intrigue. Hull was a fifth-round pick in last year’s draft, but the Northwestern product spent the majority of his rookie campaign on IR. Goodson was also on the Colts in 2023, collecting 121 yards on 19 touches. Zavier Scott and Trent Pennix round out the depth chart.

“I love the room,” Sermon said of his fellow RBs (via Locked On Colts on YouTube). “Everybody’s a little bit different, but we’re all great running backs. We compete, we push each other. If one of us makes a big play, we’re all excited for each other.”