The Pittsburgh Steelers have waived guard Bill Dunkle, the team announced on Monday, even after agreeing to trade fellow backup Kevin Dotson the day before.
Dunkle’s release signals that the team intends to keep only three guards on the active roster: starters James Daniels and Isaac Seumalo and backup Nate Herbig.
Herbig has been battling a shoulder injury and just returned to practice in full over the weekend. Daniels missed the final preseason game with an undisclosed injury that head coach Mike Tomlin called day to day.
Dunkle was a rookie free agent in 2022 and caught on with the Steelers after being an early cut by the Philadelphia Eagles. He caught on with the practice squad, where he remained throughout the 2022 season, but was not elevated to play in any games.
This preseason, Dunkle played 94 snaps over three games, with all but four of them coming at right guard. He was given a 45.0 grade by Pro Football Focus.
The three players ahead of Dunkle remain the only pure guards on the roster, but centers Kendrick Green and Ryan McCollum and seventh-round rookie tackle Spencer Anderson have also played at guard.
Dunkle’s release was one of 10 on Monday to bring the Steelers down to 72 players on their active roster. The team has until 4 p.m. on Tuesday to reach the NFL regular season limit of 53 players.