The Steelers have signed former Utah defensive end Mika Tafua to the practice squad, the team announced on Wednesday.
Tafua was invited to the Shrine Game in 2022 and was a three-time All-Pac 12 selection during his career at Utah. Throughout his career, he reached up 17.5 sacks and 32 tackles for loss over his four-year career. His best season was in 2021, where Tafua recorded nine sacks and 13 tackles for loss.
The move comes after the Atlanta Falcons poached outside linebacker David Anenih off the Steelers practice squad. Other than Anenih, only Emeka Egbule remained as an outside linebacker on the practice squad. So, the Steelers had little to no depth off their roster as a result.
Mika Tafua signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in the 2022 NFL Draft. However, they released Tafua before the start of the regular season. As such, Tafua is now finding a new home with the Steelers, but must hop on the moving train immediately in order to be ready if injuries occur.
Tafua will wear number 96 for the Steelers this season. The Steelers will expect Tafua to practice right away and learn as much as he can in a short span of time with the regular season ending in three weeks.