DB Antoine Brooks Jr. big surprise among 5 Steelers cuts
Among the Pittsburgh Steelers’ second round of cuts was a player who it was believed had started the day still in the running to be a starter.
Second-year defensive back Antoine Brooks Jr. was waived/injured, ending the former sixth-round pick’s quest to become the first-team nickel cornerback. Brooks opened camp with the first team at the spot, though he was purportedly in a competition with veteran journeyman Arthur Maulet for the role.
With Brooks out most of the past three weeks because of injury and Maulet suffering an injury early during last week’s home preseason game against the Detroit Lions, the Steelers had turned to bringing in James Pierre as the fifth defensive back in subpackages while bumping Cameron Sutton into the slot.
The Steelers continue to solidify their plans for replacing Mike Hilton, who manned the nickel spot for four seasons before signing with the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency this past spring.
Brooks had been dealing with a lower-leg injury. Although he has practiced at points over the past two weeks, he did not play in the preseason game against the Lions. Taken as a safety out of Maryland 198th overall in 2020, Brooks played 29 defensive snaps over four games as a rookie last season.
The waived/injured designation means Brooks cannot re-join the Steelers for a designated period of time, based on the settlement paid him as part of the roster move. Typically, players who teams believe are part of their future are not waived/injured and instead kept until final cuts when they can then be placed on injured reserve without the threat of losing the player to another team.
Less than four hours before the announced cuts, Steelers secondary coach Teryl Austin talked about being eager to see Brooks play in Friday’s preseason finale at the Carolina Panthers.
Other cuts announced just after the NFL-mandated 4 p.m. Tuesday deadline to trim rosters from 85 to 80 heading into the final preseason game this weekend were offensive lineman Aviante Collins, wide receiver Tyler Simmons, running back Pete Guerriero and linebacker Calvin Bundage.
Bundage was an undrafted rookie from Oklahoma State who was briefly cut on the eve of camp. Collins was signed in February after appearing in five games over three seasons bouncing between the active roster, practice squad and injured reserve list for the Minnesota Vikings.
A first-year player from Georgia whom impressed the Steelers during a workout on his former college campus this past spring, Simmons had a 5-yard touchdown catch in the Hall of Fame Game but was shut out in the Steelers’ next two preseason contests.
A near 4,000-yard rusher at FBS Monmouth, Guerriero was signed after training camp had started and had nine carries for 24 yards during the Aug. 12 preseason game at the Philadelphia Eagles.
Collins, Guerriero and Bundage did not get onto the field during Saturday’s preseason game.
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Chris Adamski is a TribLive reporter who has covered primarily the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2014 following two seasons on the Penn State football beat. A Western Pennsylvania native, he joined the Trib in 2012 after spending a decade covering Pittsburgh sports for other outlets. He can be reached at cadamski@triblive.com.
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