Steelers Sign Speedy RB Tony Brooks-James, OT Christian DiLauro to Practice Squad

The Steelers replenished their practice squad on Tuesday, signing running back Tony Brooks-James and offensive lineman Christian DiLauro.

The team had two open spots on the practice squad after quarterback Paxton Lynch and running back Trey Edmunds were promoted to the active roster on Friday to replaced injured players Mason Rudolph and Jaylen Samuels.

The Steelers waived Fred Johnson and Jay Elliott to make room on the active roster. Johnson was lost on waivers to the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday. Elliott cleared waivers and was not retained.

Brooks-James is a rookie out of Oregon that originally signed with the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free agent and was also on the practice squad of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

In four preseason games with the Falcons, he rushed for 180 yards on 25 carries and two touchdowns. At Oregon, the 5-foot-9, 190-pound James rushed for 1,836 yards on 283 carries and scored 18 touchdowns. He also caught 40 passes for 392 yards and two more scores. He ran an unofficial 4.45-second 40-yard dash at Oregon’s pro day.

DiLauro, 24, is a first-year tackle out of Illinois. He spent the 2018 preseason with the Cleveland Browns after signing there as an undrafted free agent, but was cut at the end of camp. He spent the 2018 regular season on the San Francisco 49ers practice squad and the 2019 preseason with San Francisco, but was again released before the season. He was on the Houston Texans practice squad until Oct. 1.