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Steelers Let Contracts of Five Practice Squad Players, Including QB Devlin Hodges, Expire

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The Steelers let the contracts of five members of their 2020 practice squad expire on Monday, including former starting quarterback Devlin Hodges.

Hodges, wide receiver Deon Cain, tight end Charles Jones, running back Wendell Smallwood and kicker Matthew Wright all had their contracts lapse.

Four of the five players saw playing time with the Steelers at some point in the last two seasons, most notably Hodges, who started six games and played in eight in 2019.

Filling after injuries to Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph, Hodges threw for 1,063 yards while completing 62.5% of his passes. He threw for five touchdowns and eight interceptions for a 71.4 quarterback rating. The Steelers went 3-3 in games Hodges started.

After the Steelers re-acquired Josh Dobbs in the 2020 offseason, Hodges was bumped to fourth on the team’s depth chart and was not activated at any point during the 2020 season.

Wright filled in three times for injured Steelers kicker Chris Boswell this season, making seven of seven extra points and all four field goals, including three in the team’s Week 17 loss at Cleveland.

Cain played in two games as a practice squad recall this season without a target after spending six games in Pittsburgh — including three starts — in 2019, when he caught five of six passes for 72 yards.

Smallwood, a West Virginia alum, signed with the team as a free agent this offseason and was activated from the practice squad for one games, playing just two snaps on special teams.

Jones joined the team’s practice squad midseason after previously spending time with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills.

The players’ contracts expiring do not preclude them from re-singing with the Steelers for 2021. The Steelers have signed 15 players to futures contracts for the 2021 season since the team’s 2020 season ended.