Seven former Steelers are among the NFL’s early cuts

Seven former Pittsburgh Steelers members are present waivers Or they’ve been released as NFL teams begin the process of cutting from 90 players to 53 ahead of Tuesday’s deadline.

Five players received waivers after being released over the weekend, and two more are veterans who were released fully. Exemptions won’t be processed again until Wednesday noon, so all players who currently have waivers will be in limbo until then.

The five former Steelers players on waivers are defensive tackle Doug Kostin, defensive tackle Donovan Jeter, outside linebacker Dillontay Scott, tight end Jesse Sternberger and kicker Matthew Wright.

Wide receiver Deon Cain and outside linebacker Taco Charlton have been released as veterans and are free to sign with any team.

Scott was released by the Atlanta Falcons after playing against the Steelers on Thursday night and recording tackles there and two quarterbacks rushing. The SMU graduate spent parts of two seasons with the Steelers from 2021-22. Since being released by Pittsburgh last September, he spent time with the Carolina Panthers’ practice squad last fall and played with the San Antonio Brahms of the XFL this spring. He signed with the Falcons late in camp on August 16th.

Wright was placed on waivers by the Carolina Panthers, who elected to keep kicker Eddie Piñero over him. Wright had three separate stints with the Steelers, first joining the team as an undrafted free agent from UCF in 2019. He played one game with the team in 2020 and four games in 2022 in relief of Chris Boswell.

Sternberger was cut by the Buffalo Bills. He spent part of the 2021 season at the Steelers’ practice squad and has been with the club through the 2022 season. Since then, he’s played for the Birmingham Stallions this spring and signed with the Bills on July 25.

Costin was with the Las Vegas Raiders. Costin joined the Steelers for training camp in 2022 after playing for the Birmingham Stallions this spring. After being released by the Steelers, he joined the Arlington Renegades for the spring 2023 season and joined Vegas late in camp on August 23.

Jeter, a Beaver Falls native, was let go by the New York Giants. The Steelers signed Jeter as an undrafted free agent from Michigan last April, but he was cut upon exiting training camp and picked up with the Washington Chiefs. Jeter also spent time with the Chicago Bears that season before joining the Giants early in camp on August 4.

Cain was let go by the Eagles after a stellar spring season with the NFL’s Birmingham Stallions. He spent parts of the 2019 season and all of the 2020 seasons with the Steelers, and also played for the Baltimore Ravens in 2021 and the Eagles in 2021-22.

The San Francisco 49ers released Charlton with an injury settlement. He was placed on injured reserve due to an undisclosed injury on August 19. It is not clear when he will be healthy enough to resume playing for another team. A former first-round pick with the Steelers in 2021, he was a fit for the Saints, Bears and Jaguars before joining the 49ers on Aug. 1.