Steelers Work Out Two Former Rival DBs

Former All-Pro Reinforcement?

Neither Bell nor Jackson have played so far in the 2025 season, with both last suiting up for a contest during the 2024 campaign. However, when Jackson was in his prime with the Chicago Bears, he was one of the top at his position. He was a two-time Pro Bowler and one time AP First-Team All-Pro.

Jackson has played in 111 NFL games over his career. In that span, he’s accumulated 15 interceptions and over 400 total tackles. His career best season came in 2018, when he intercepted two passes, one of those he returned for a touchdown, six passes defended and 51 tackles in just 14 regular season contests.

Last year, he split between the Bears and Ravens. He appeared in nine games for Baltimore, starting four, and recorded 30 total tackles.

Divisional Rival Could Be Solution

Former Bengals safety Vonn Bell is quite familiar with the Steelers organization. He spent four of five seasons in Cincinnati between 2020 and 2024, giving him plenty of of experience and competitive battles with Pittsburgh.

Bell was originally a New Orleans Saints draft pick, and he joined the Bengals for the 2020 campaign.

It was his first year with the Bengals when he made his career-best impact. He recorded 114 total tackles, successful defended five passes and forced three fumbles for a surprisingly productive Cincinnati defense.

Over his career, he’s played in 139 games and started 117 of them.

While the Steelers can’t expect either of these players to fill the void completely left by Elliott, they need all the help they can get. The team is allowing the most passing yards per game in the NFL, surrendering over 270 yards through the air per contest. There's no clear end to that porous defense in sight, but the organization is being aggressive in trying to find improvements.