Steelers Release Former Patriots LB

Bentley's Short-Lived Steelers Tenure

After giving up a combined 299 yards on the ground to the New York Jets and Seattle Seahawks over the first two weeks of the season, the Steelers signed Bentley to their practice squad with the hope that he could potentially help the team defend the run somewhere down the line.

A downhill thumper who was a staple in the middle of the New England Patriots' defense for parts of seven seasons, logging 509 tackles over 83 games, Bentley is similar in style to former Steelers linebacker and Patriots teammate Elandon Roberts, who left Pittsburgh in favor of a one-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders this past offseason.

In a perfect world, Bentley could've filled the role that Roberts left vacated. Instead, he's now on his way out of Pittsburgh after not being elevated from the practice squad or signing to the team's active roster during his stay with the organization.

Steelers LB Depth

With Bentley no longer in tow, the Steelers have a noticable lack of inside linebacker depth on their practice squad. Jon Rhattigan is the best option in that regard, though he's more of a special teams ace and has only logged 21 defensive snaps throughout his NFL career.

The 53-man roster is in good shape, though, as Patrick Queen has excelled in his second season with Pittsburgh while Payton Wilson has continued to play a big role within the team's defense in his second professional campaign after being selected in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Cole Holcomb and rookie seventh-round pick Carson Bruener are the Steelers' reserve options at the position, though the latter has played just one defensive snap so far this year.

Malik Harrison was placed on the reserve/injured list with a knee injury ahead of Week 2, meaning he'd be eligible to return before Week 7 after he misses the required four games, but his timeline for return isn't clear at this point.