The Pittsburgh Steelers are in dire need of help defending the pass, as they are last in the NFL in that category.
Cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. seemingly could bolster the secondary after being signed to the practice squad on Thursday as a free agent. However, it remains to be seen whether Samuel can be ready to be elevated to the active roster in time for Sunday's game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh.
Wednesday's practice marked the first time in more than a year that Samuel had worn pads. He played just four games with the Los Angeles Chargers last season before being injured and eventually undergoing spinal fusion surgery.
"You see he's kept himself in pretty good shape," Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said Thursday. "You see him running around. Where that leads at the end of the week, I won't know until we get to the end of the week."
Samuel has been working at outside cornerback in practice, which is important to note because Darius Slay is questionable for Sunday after sustaining a concussion in last Sunday night's loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. James Pierre is slated to start in Slay's place, while Joey Porter Jr. plays the other outside corner, and Brandin Echols will remain in the slot corner role.
Samuel, though, could help the Steelers if healthy. He has six career interceptions, and Pro Football Focus ranked Samuel as the NFL's 25th-best cornerback in 2023, his last full season. For comparison, Porter is ranked No. 50 this season by PFF, while Echols is 56th and Slay is No. 71. Pierre has an outstanding 90.0 grade, but has played 111 snaps in nine games, not enough to qualify for PFF's rankings.
"He's got a skill set, obviously, we've seen that on tape," Austin said of Samuel. "He can run, he's got ball skills, he has all the natural movements that a corner does. And so I would think he would fit in here in terms of the amount of single-high (coverage) that we play and being able to guard people. But again, we'll let that thing take its course, and we'll see where it takes us."