Pittsburgh Steelers make multiple roster moves to get under 85-player limit

Ahead of the NFL’s deadline to limit the roster to 85 players, the Pittsburgh Steelers made a handful of moves on Tuesday, including the signing of undrafted free agent guard William Dunkle.

Dunkle played at San Diego State before signing out of the draft with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles waived him in mid-June.

To add Dunkle to the roster and get under 85 players, Mike Tomlin’s staff waived defensive tackle Doug Costin, offensive tackle Jake Dixon, former Georgia punter Cameron Nizialek and former Alabama center Chris Owens.

The Steelers also announced that they put safety Karl Joseph and receiver Anthony Miller on the Reserve/Injured List.

Reports revealed that Miller is out for the season due to a shoulder injury he suffered in practice leading up to the team’s first scrimmage. Miller has primarily been used as a slot receiver throughout his career. With the Texans and Bears, the 5-foot-11 receiver totaled 139 catches for 1,587 yards and 12 touchdowns. In his years in Chicago, he also added in nine rushes for 37 yards and one touchdown. So far for the Steelers, he has just one catch for two yards, which came versus Cincinnati.

Joseph is also reportedly out for the season with a severe ankle injury. He suffered his injury during the first preseason game. He went down in the first quarter and had to exit the field on a cart. The former Browns defensive back returned to the sidelines with an air cast.

Steelers sign former Falcons linebacker James Vaughters

The Steelers also announced the signing of former Falcons linebacker James Vaughters on Tuesday. In a corresponding move, the team waived Tuzar Skipper with an injury designation.

Vaughters, a former Stanford Cardinal standout, began his NFL career in 2015 as an undrafted free agent. He played several years in the CFL before playing his first NFL game for the Bears. He played 17 games for Chicago over two years then played 10 games with the Falcons in 2021.

On his career, Vaughters has 33 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and a forced fumble in 27 games played. The 6-foot-2, 255-pound linebacker is 29 years old. He played four seasons at Stanford from 2011 to 2014. His final collegiate season was his best as he posted 50 tackles with 6.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.

The Steelers are coming off of a win in their first preseason game versus the Seattle Seahawks. On Saturday, Pittsburgh travels to Jacksonville to face Doug Pederson’s Jaguars in preseason game two.