Steelers At Risk of Losing Asante Samuel Jr.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are reaching a potential inflection point when it comes to Asante Samuel Jr.

The 26-year-old signed to the Steelers' practice squad on November 11, though he has yet to be elevated or join their active roster. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ray Fittipaldo noted that Samuel's time could be coming soon given that the team's dealing with some injuries at corner, but other organizations may be lurking in an attempt to add some experienced depth in their secondaries as the postseason push kicks into full gear.

"[Samuel] is interesting because they're banged up at quarterback," Fittipaldo said during an appearance on 93.7 The Fan. "They could probably use another body back there with Joey Porter Jr. going down last week. The other reason Samuel is interesting too, is I'm sure he wants to play and he's only on the practice squad, and we all know there were like 10 teams interested in him a couple weeks ago. Any of those teams can swoop in and sign him to their 53[-man roster]."

Samuel's Time in Pittsburgh

Samuel hit free agency back in March as one of the top corners on the market, but he remained available for much longer than initially expected due to injury.

He appeared in just four games for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2024 with what had been described as a shoulder injury, though he ultimately underwent spinal fusion surgery during the offseason, which was completed by Steelers neurosurgeon Daniel Okonkwo.

Samuel drew a ton of interest from playoff contenders around the league upon being cleared to play earlier this month, and he landed with Pittsburgh ahead of its Week 11 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.