Steelers Try Out Son of Pro Football Hall of Famer

The Pittsburgh Steelers worked out two players on Tuesday, one of which is the son of a Pro Football Hall of Fame. Tight end Thaddeus Moss, the son of legendary Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss, was as UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on Tuesday for a free agent workout.

Thaddeus Moss is a 6-foot-3, 249-pound tight end that has spent time with the Washington Football Team and the Cincinnati Bengals in his two professional seasons, but has yet to play in an NFL game.

Moss came out of LSU after just one full collegiate season in 2020 and went undrafted. He signed with WFT as an undrafted free agent, but spent the entire 2020 season on Washington’s injured reserve list.

In 2021, he was waived by Washington and claimed by Cincinnati, where he was paired with fellow former LSU Tigers Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. Moss was set to play in the Bengals’ game against the Steelers last November, but suffered a hamstring injury in pregame warmups.

The Bengals brought Moss back for 2022, but he was cut on Aug. 30. Moss was originally signed to Cincinnati’s practice squad, but was cut from that unit on Sept. 5.

The Steelers could be looking for extra practice squad tight end help with the Cleveland Browns on the schedule for Week 18. Cleveland frequently uses  both David Njoku and Harrison Bryant. Pittsburgh could also be evaluating players to sign to reserve/future contracts for the 2023 season.

The other player in town for a workout on Tuesday was former Michigan State lineman Mike Panasiuk. Panasiuk joined the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2020 and spent his first pro season as a practice squad defensive tackle. 

In 2021, he changed positions to center, but spent the entire season on the injured reserve list. The Panthers did not offer him a contract for 2022, despite holding exclusive rights, and Panasiuk has not played elsewhere since. The Steelers listed him as a guard on the tryout sheet.

Teams can begin signing players to future contracts starting at the end of their season, which could come as soon as next week for the Steelers, which must beat the Cleveland Browns in Week 18 and get some help to stay alive in the postseason.

The Steelers currently have 53 players on their active roster, 16 on the practice squad and nine on the injured reserve list, so they can add 12 additional players to their 90-man offseason roster immediately following the end of their season.