The Steelers have finally agreed to a brand new take care of Dean Lowry. The team announced that they’ve signed the free agent defensive lineman to a one-year deal. To make room on the roster, the Steelers have waived defensive tackle Jahvaree Ritzie.
There have been reports last month that the 2 sides had agreed to a brand new contract. Nevertheless, that was quickly dismissed, because the Steelers wanted to provide the veteran more time to return to playing shape. The 31-year-old is working his way back from a torn ACL suffered last summer.
Lowry joined the Steelers on a two-year, $5MM contract throughout the 2024 offseason. He mostly served as a backup during his first season in Pittsburgh, stepping into about 20 percent of his team’s defensive snaps in his 12 appearances. The veteran suffered a torn ACL during last 12 months’s training camp that erased his entire 2025 campaign. We heard previously that Lowry had been given medical clearance, and the Steelers are apparently completely satisfied enough along with his recovery to bring him back for an additional season.
The previous fourth-round pick was a dependable starter during his long stint in Green Bay, where he began 80 of his 111 appearances. He tallied 15.5 sacks, 23 TFLs, and 34 QB hits during his seven seasons with the Packers. He left for the Vikings on a two-year deal in 2023, but a pectoral injury limited him to only nine games that 12 months. Lowry was cut loose after just one season in Minnesota.
While he’s unlikely to return to his early-career production, Lowry will still provide the Steelers with some veteran continuity on the defensive position. Isaiahh Loudermilk and Daniel Ekuale are each out the door, with Sebastian Joseph-Day representing Pittsburgh’s reinforcement up front. Derrick Harmon, Cameron Heyward, and Keeanu Benton will still command the vast majority of the snaps on the DL, but Lowry ought to be a dependable depth piece and special teamer.
Ritzie went undrafted out of North Carolina in 2025 before catching on with the Patriots. He had a temporary stint on Recent England’s practice squad before getting cut in September. He caught on with Pittsburgh in January via a reserve/futures contract.