When the Pittsburgh Steelers released RB Isaiah Pead from their 53-man roster, and promoted RB Fitzgerald Toussaint to their active roster, it vacated a position on the team's 10-man practice squad. The team filled the void today with RB Rajion Neal.
The #Steelers have signed RB Rajion Neal to their practice squad.
— Burt Lauten (@SteelersPRBurt) December 1, 2015
Neal, a 5-foot 11-inches, 220-pound running back, was an undrafted rookie free agent by the Green Bay Packers in 2014. After an injury forced his release, and an injury settlement, Neal spent time on both the Miami Dolphins and Oakland Raiders practice squads before finally being released by Oakland in early November of this year.
The juggling of running backs certainly raises eyebrows on many levels. The signing of Pead to the active roster, when Toussaint was on the practice squad, indicated Pead would be a back to see time if something happened to DeAngelo Williams. Pead was released, just days after Mike Tomlin lauded his work ethic over the bye week in his weekly press conference, and the rest is history.
Life in the NFL isn't always glamorous, but for players like Toussaint and Neal, they have found a home with the black and gold...at least for the time being.