Bud Dupree Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Could the Steelers be contemplating a Bud Dupree reunion?

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated Mar 16, 2023 1:19 PM ET

The Bud Dupree experiment in Tennessee lasted all of two seasons.

Now, the 30-year-old linebacker, who’s a free agent after being released by the Titans on Wednesday in a cap saving move, could be heading back to the team that drafted him 22nd overall in 2015, according to a report from CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson.

I’m told the #Steelers have preliminary interest in bringing back Edge Rusher Bud Dupree if they deem “he’s healthy,” a source said. Dupree’s name has definitely come up in Pitt. We’ll see if they end up together once he sorts out his market following his release from Tennessee.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 16, 2023

Dupree signed a five-year $82.5 million contract with the Titans in March of 2021 but begun that season on the physically unable to perform list while recovering from a torn ACL. That injury limited Dupree to just 11 games that year as he struggled to adjust post-ACL surgery and battled knee and abdomen strains.

The Kentucky alum struggled with injuries again this season, missing six games while battling a hip injury.

Dupree spent the first six seasons of his NFL career in Pittsburgh, establishing himself as one of the league’s premier pass rushers. During his Steelers tenure, he totaled 231 tackles, 223 pressures, 148 hurries, 54 tackles for loss and 39.5 sacks, including a career-high 11.5 in 2019.

A Dupree reunion would give Pittsburgh one of the stronger group of pass rushers in the AFC that includes defensive tackle Cameron Hayward (10 or more sacks in back-to-back years) and linebackers T.J. Watt (77.5 sacks in six seasons, including an NFL-record tying 22.5 in 2021) and Alex Highsmith (career-high 14.5 sacks in 2022).

Michael Gallagher

Michael Gallagher is a longtime sports journalist based out of Nashville with a decade of experience covering college football, mixed martial arts and prep sports plus the NFL and NHL — specifically the Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators. He’s covered several notable sporting events including an AFC Championship game, a Stanley Cup Final, an NHL All-Star Game and an NHL Stadium Series. Some of his past bylines can be found at the Nashville Scene, SB Nation, The Hockey News and Fox Sports Knoxville

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