Steelers release three players, including QB Mitch Trubisky،
PITTSBURGH — A year after signing him to a two-year extension, the Steelers have released quarterback Mitch Trubisky, the team announced Monday.
The Steelers also released longtime offensive lineman Chukwuma Okorafor and punter Pressley Harvin on Monday. These moves saved the Steelers nearly $13 million in salary cap space for 2024.
With Trubisky gone and late-season hero Mason Rudolph set to hit free agency in March, 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett is currently the only quarterback on the Steelers' roster for 2024.
Trubisky, 29, was expected to count more than $7 million against the Steelers' cap hit in 2024 and more than $8 million in 2025. Instead, Trubisky now leaves behind a cap hit of $4.6 million in 2024, saving the Steelers nearly $3 million.
The organization initially signed the Chicago Bears' No. 2 pick in 2017 on the first day of the 2022 free agency period before drafting Pickett at No. 20 overall a few months later.
After a quarterback competition during training camp, Trubisky started the first four games of the 2022 season before being replaced by Pickett at halftime of the Week 4 game against the New York Jets in the goal of giving a spark to the stagnant offense.
Playing in relief of an injured Pickett, Trubisky appeared in three more games that season, going 2–1 in those outings. Believing Trubisky was valuable as Pickett's veteran backup and mentor, the Steelers then signed him to a new three-year contract in May 2023 worth a total of $19.4 million.
But Trubisky failed as a backup in 2023 and was ultimately benched for Rudolph after throwing three picks for three touchdowns in three games while Pickett recovered from an ankle injury and subsequent surgery . While Rudolph provided a spark to the offense, Trubisky dressed as the No. 2 quarterback for two games and was inactive for the Week 18 win over the Baltimore Ravens and wild-card round loss. card against the Buffalo Bills.
As a Steeler, Trubisky appeared in 12 games, starting seven of them. He completed 64.1% of his pass attempts and threw eight touchdowns to 10 interceptions.
Okorafor, 26, had one year remaining on a three-year contract worth $29.5 million, and his release saves the Steelers nearly $9 million in cap space. Okorafor has started 59 games and appeared in 77 since being selected by the Steelers in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Okorafor, however, was benched for rookie first-round pick Broderick Jones after Week 7 and played only a handful of snaps the rest of the season.
Harvin, meanwhile, was a seventh-round selection in 2021 and has been inconsistent throughout his three-season career with the Steelers despite beating longtime punter Jordan Berry as a rookie. Harvin, 25, finished with a net average of 39.4 yards per punt and an overall average of 43.7.
