Steelers add a quarterback to their practice squad

Pittsburgh Steelers have officially announced a pair of transactions the day following their Week 10 match up with the Detroit Lions. As previously reported, Minkah Fitzpatrick has been officially placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 List after having a positive test on Monday.

The other transaction taken by the Steelers is they signed quarterback James Morgan to the practice squad.

Drafted in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL draft by the New York Jets, Morgan played two seasons at Bowling Green State before finishing his college career with two seasons at Florida International. Staying on the 53-man roster for all of 2020, Morgan did not see any playing time for the Jets last season. Appearing in all three of the Jets preseason games in 2021, Morgan was 19 of 35 for 208 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Failing to make the 53-man roster this season, Morgan was on the Carolina Panthers practice squad for the first nine weeks in the NFL season but was released last Friday.

With quarterback Ben Roethlisberger currently on the Reserve/COVID-19 List, the addition of Morgan may be nothing more than precautionary as Roethlisberger’s status for this Sunday’s game against the Chargers in Los Angeles has yet to be determined. Also, the Steelers may have just found it useful to have a quarterback on the practice squad just in case a Covid issue were to arise in the future.

In order to make room for Morgan on the practice squad, the Steelers have released nose tackle Isaiah Mack.

It should be noted that with both Ben Roethlisberger and Minkah Fitzpatrick currently on the Reserve/COVID-19 List, the Steelers only have 51 players on their active roster. Whether or not the Steelers fill their two roster spots prior to this week’s practice time remains to be seen as they may be holding the positions in hopes that Roethlisberger and/or Fitzpatrick could re-join the team prior to their Week 11 game.

Stay tuned to Behind The Steel Curtain for continued coverage as the Steelers prepare to take on the Chargers in Los Angeles on Sunday night.