Steelers Add to Tight End Depth with Freiermuth Out

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed former Cincinnati Bengals and New England Patriots tight end Scotty Washington to their practice squad, the team announced on Tuesday.

With Pat Freiermuth on the shelf for several weeks after suffering a setback in his return from a hamstring injury on Thursday, the Steelers looked to fill some depth on the practice squad.

Washington joined the Bengals as an undrafted free agent out of Wake Forest in 2020 and spent two seasons in Cincinnati without appearing in a game. After being waived by the Bengals in 2022, he caught on with the Patriots’ practice squad. He was elevated for one game, against his former team on Dec. 24, and he played 22 snaps and did not record any statistics.

The Patriots re-signed Washington for 2023, but he was waived on Aug. 27 and has not caught on with another team since.

A 6-foot-5, 247-pound native of Washington, D.C., Washington caught 110 passes for 1,676 yards and 13 touchdowns for the Demon Deacons from 2015-19. His best season came as a redshirt senior in 2019, when he hauled in 35 passes for 607 yards and seven scores.

The Steelers have three tight ends on their active roster: Darnell Washington, Connor Heyward and Rodney Williams. The move to add Washington came along with the signing of linebacker Caleb Johnson and the release of tight end Noah Gindorff and tackle Obinna Eze. The team has one open slot on its 53-man roster.

Freiermuth will have to miss at least the next three games while on injured reserve and is eligible to return on Nov. 19 against the Cleveland Browns.