Category: Steelers 2024 UDFA class

Steelers agree to terms with Charlotte UDFA OLB Julius Welschof

The Steelers now have a second Charlotte OLB in UDFA Julius Welschof.

The Pittsburgh Steelers now have a second Charlotte outside linebacker in undrafted free agent Julius Welschof, whom the team agreed to terms with on Saturday.

Welschof played for three years at Michigan, where he was a teammate of Steelers rookie receiver Roman Wilson, before transferring to Charlotte for his final season.

In four seasons, Welschof logged 29 tackles and one sack.

According to Alan Saunders of Steelers Now, the Miesbach, Germany native qualifies for the NFL’s international roster exemption, which means the team will have 91 players in training camp and can sign 17 players to their practice squad if Welschof is one of them.

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Steelers agree to terms with West Virginia UDFA CB Beanie Bishop

After taking Ryan Watts with their final pick in the draft, the Steelers turned around and added West Virginia UDFA corner Beanie Bishop. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers can never have enough cornerbacks. After selecting Ryan Watts with their final pick in the draft, Pittsburgh turned around and added West Virginia undrafted free agent corner Beanie Bishop.

Here’s what NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein had to say about Bishop:

After six years and three college stops, Bishop burst on the scene with major ball production in 2023. He was frequently targeted as an undersized outside corner at West Virginia and gave up his share of catch yardage. Bishop struggles with a lack of speed and length when beaten early in man coverage and allows easy catches in front of him from shuffle technique. When in phase, Bishop’s quick feet and burst to close allow him to attack passing lanes and disrupt the catch. He plays with adequate aggression against the run and is best suited playing from the slot with his eyes forward from short-zone and off-man coverages.

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Steelers agree to terms with Michigan State UDFA LB Jacoby Windmon

The Steelers keep their UDFA signings rolling with Michigan State LB Jacoby Windmon.

The Pittsburgh Steelers keep their undrafted free agent signings rolling with Michigan State linebacker Jacoby Windmon.

Windmon transferred to Michigan State from UNLV at the start of his fifth season.

In 2023, Windmon logged playing time in just three games and logged a total of 93 snaps six tackles, four assists, and three stops. As a pass rusher, he tallied three total pressures, which included one QB hurry, one QB hit and a one sack.

Here are some strengths and weaknesses on the 6-foot-2 linebacker, provided by NFLDraftBuzz.com:

Strengths:

  • Showed initial quickness and good flexibility to dip and bend. Windmon has active hands and suddenness to his movements, demonstrating the ability to counter inside.
  • Shows toughness to get under the pads of tackles to bull them, club them upfield to get the inside lane, or fight through blocks for secondary rush when the passer steps up.
  • He has an excellent feel for working off blockers and knowing how and when to counter as the play goes on.
  • He has value as an inside blitzer as well, showing the initial burst to shoot through gaps and disrupt the backfield.
  • A chase-and-tackle Will prospect, Windmon is instinctive, reading and reacting quickly and showing the ability to absolutely fly around the field.
  • Windmon shows good quickness off the line of scrimmage and flashes the violent hands to win around the edge.

Weaknesses:

  • He’ll need to be covered up to be effective. He’s not the kind of guy you can line up in the pass rush and have him bend the edge; he’s limited to shooting through gaps.
  • He’s often slow to react and locate the ball against the run.
  • While Windmon has the take-on skills to be a 4-3 Mike, he’s probably better as a Will so he can maximize his range and speed.

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Steelers sign Taysom Hill comparison, QB John Rhys Plumlee

The Steelers signed UDFA QB John Rhys Plumlee.

The Pittsburgh Steelers historically go into offseason training with four quarterbacks, and they appear to have their fourth in UCF’s John Rhys Plumlee.

“Extremely fired up to be a part of Steeler Nation,” Plumlee posted to X after he got the call.

While Plumlee played quarterback in 2023, he also was a wide receiver at the collegiate level.

Here’s what NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein had to say about Plumlee, who he compares to New Orleans Saints Swiss Army knife Taysom Hill.

Plumlee’s passing tape probably won’t be enough to get evaluators excited, but an outside-the-box evaluation creates more intrigue. He lacks size and the arm talent associated with playing quarterback in the NFL, but he has some ability in the pocket. He shines on designed runs and scrambles, where his speed and competitiveness allow him to score touchdowns and move the chains. Teams could choose to use him as a QB3 with gadget potential on short-yardage and red-zone snaps, but learning to run routes could expand his NFL versatility and allow creative play-callers to find a role for him.

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Steelers agree to terms with Georgia UDFA RB Daijun Edwards

The Steelers agreed to terms with their first UDFA Daijun Edwards.

It didn’t take long before Georgia Bulldog Daijun Edwards found an NFL home. According to his representatives, SportsTrust Advisors, the Pittsburgh Steelers have agreed to terms with the running back.

Edwards was a productive member of the Bulldogs in all four seasons after signing as a four-star recruit in 2020. The 5-foot-10 back led Georgia in rushing last season, finishing with 880 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.

Edwards should be a solid depth piece in a room that currently includes starters Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren and Cordarrelle Patterson and Aaron Shampklin.

Here’s what NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein had to say about Edwards:

Edwards has done a solid job of handling his business and helping the Georgia offense over the last two seasons. He’s slightly undersized as an early-down back, but it doesn’t hold him back as an interior runner with good contact balance and run strength. Edwards is an unorthodox runner with the ability to side-step the first tackler, but his run tends to get bogged down after that, as other defenders rally and scoop him up. He reads blockers fairly well and can squeeze through the crevices, but he lacks the consistent quickness needed to stay ahead of NFL defenses. Edwards should battle for a roster spot as a Day 3 pick.

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