The Steelers activated quarterback Will Howard from the Reserve/Injured List to the 53-man roster. The team also signed cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. to the practice squad. In related moves, the team waived running back Trey Sermon from the 53-man roster and released defensive back Darrick Forest from the practice squad.
Howard returned to practice on Oct. 22, and the Steelers had a 21-day window to either activate Howard or he remained on the Reserve/Injured List for the remainder of the season.
Howard was placed on the Reserve/Injured List on Aug. 28 after dealing with a hand injury in camp and missing all of the preseason.
Howard was excited when he first stepped back on the practice field, getting back that feeling he had missed so much.
"It was like all that joy of being a little kid playing football again came back," said Howard. "My first two plays (when I returned) on the scout team, I handed the ball off. I don't think I've ever smiled more on two handoff plays in my life. I was just happy to be back out there.
"It's been a long time. I'm just happy to be out there doing what I love."
Howard is planning on taking advantage of every rep he gets.
"Reps are reps. At this level, especially going against our first team defense," said Howard. "I think a lot of people look at scout team as just something that you're skipping over. But I think you can really get a lot out of it when you look at it the right way and you approach it the way.
"I think there's a lot to learn from that stuff, and stuff you can work on that maybe you can't really do when you're working with the offense and trying to perfect the plays.
"So, just trying to get out there, give our defense a good look, and have fun doing it."
The Steelers drafted Howard in the sixth-round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the 185th overall pick out of Ohio State.
Howard spent one season playing for the Buckeyes after starting his college career at Kansas State. He appeared in a total of 50 games in his college career, completing 767 of 1,202 passes, 63.8%, for 9,796 yards, 83 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
Howard started all 16 games for the Buckeyes, leading them to a school record 14 wins and the College Football Playoff National Championship. He completed 309 of 423 passes for 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns. His completion percentage was a career and school record, also setting an Ohio State record with eight games with at least an 80% completion percentage.
Among the honors Howard won in 2024 were the Most Valuable Player in the win over Texas in the Cotton Bowl and the win over Notre Dame in the CFP National Championship.
Howard began his college career in 2020 at Kansas State and in four seasons appeared in 34 games. He completed 458 of 779 passes for 5,786 yards and 48 touchdowns.
Samuel was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He spent four seasons with the Chargers, starting 47 of the 50 games he played in. Samuel appeared in only four games in 2024 after dealing with injuries.
In four seasons with the Chargers, he had six interceptions, 37 passes defensed and a fumble recovery.
Samuel played college football at Florida State where he appeared in 32 games. He recorded 96 tackles, 71 of them solo stops, 33 passes defensed, four interceptions, three tackles for a loss, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble.
Samuel is the son of All-Pro cornerback Asante Samuel, who spent 11 seasons in the NFL and was a two-time Super Bowl champion.
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