Steelers Release WR from Injured Reserve

UNITY TWP., Pa. — The Pittsburgh Steelers have released wide receiver Ja’Marcus Bradley from their injured reserve list with an injury settlement, according to the NFL transactions page for Thursday.

The Steelers waived Bradley with an injury designation on Aug. 8. He cleared waivers and reverted to the injured reserve list the next day.

Bradley had been dealing with a hamstring injury that Mike Tomlin characterized as minor, but the Steelers were in the midst of a roster crunch in their secondary, with cornerback Cory Trice Jr. and safety Damontae Kazee, Keanu Neal and Tre Norwood all suffering injuries while Minkah Fitzpatrick was away from the team for personal reasons. The Steelers signed safety Jalen Elliott the day they waived Bradley.

Bradley’s injury settlement will last the length of time that he is expected to miss with the injury. After that, he will be free to sign with any other team. If three additional weeks go by and he remains unsigned, he could re-sign with the Steelers at that point.

The 6-foot-1, 198-pound Bradley signed with the Steelers in November of last season and finished the year on the practice squad and never really got to display his talents to the Steelers’ coaches.

Before his time in Pittsburgh, he spent parts of three seasons with the Cleveland Browns. In Cleveland, Bradley appeared in eight games and logged nine receptions for 124 yards. In addition, he returned kicks for the Browns at a point and averaged 24.5 yards per return.

A Louisiana alum, Bradley steadily improved each season to the point of being the first Ragin’ Cajun to haul in 10-plus touchdowns in consecutive seasons. Additionally, Bradley returned kicks for Louisiana in his final two seasons as he averaged 21.1 yards per return.

In 2019, Bradley led Louisiana with 60 receptions for 906 yards and 10 touchdowns. He finished his Ragin’ Cajun career ranked second in school history with 23 touchdowns.