With offensive tackle Calvin Anderson on injured reserve, the Pittsburgh Steelers needed offensive line depth so they signed veteran John Leglue to their practice squad on Tuesday. To make room, the club released outside linebacker Ade Ogundeji from the PS.
Ogundeji has been on and off the roster throughout the season. This is his third time being released.
The Steelers originally signed Ogundeji to their practice squad on Aug. 30, and he was promoted to the active roster on Oct. 12, as the team was dealing with injuries to both Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig at outside linebacker. That started a series of back-and-forth roster moves for the Notre Dame product.
Ogundeji was waived on Oct. 14, re-signed to the practice squad on Oct. 16, promoted to the active roster once again on Oct. 19 and waived for a second time on Oct. 29. He was then brought back to the practice squad on Nov. 1.
Ogundeji played in three Steelers for the games. He played in 25 snaps against the Las Vegas Raiders on Oct. 13, recording one pass defended. He also played in each of the last two games against the New York Jets and Giants, on both defense and special teams.
A 6-foot-4, 268-pound edge rusher, Ogundeji first joined the Atlanta Falcons as a fifth-round draft pick out of Notre Dame in 2021. Ogundeji immediately became a regular in Atlanta, starting 11 games in his rookie season in 2021 and 16 games in 2022. Last season, he missed the entire year due to foot and ankle injuries and Ogundeji was released by the Falcons on May 16.
In 2021, he recorded 33 tackles, five tackles for loss, one sack, two quarterback hits, one pass defended and one forced fumble in 11 games. In 2022, Ogundeji had 42 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and one quarterback hit in 16 games.
A native of West Bloomfield, Michigan, Ogundeji redshirted his freshman season at Notre Dame in 2016 and played sparingly in 2017 before becoming a regular part of the rotation in 2018. His best collegiate season came in 2020, when he recorded 23 tackles and seven sacks in 12 games.