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The Pittsburgh Steelers made a big trade ahead of final 53-man roster cuts on Tuesday, fortifying the defense by adding an important depth piece at the outside linebacker position. According to Mike McCartney of Vayner Sports, the Steelers have acquired linebacker Malik Reed from the Denver Broncos. The Broncos will be obtaining a late-round compensatory pick as part of the deal, according to Adam Schefter.
Trade alert: @Broncos trading Malik Reed ( @MTR_90 ) to the @steelers
— Mike McCartney (@MikeMcCartney7) August 30, 2022
The addition of Reed is a solid get for the Steelers. The linebacker is entering his fourth year in the pros and played a sizable role for the Broncos over the past few seasons.
Last year, Reed featured in 14 games for the Broncos, starting 13. He recorded 43 tackles, two forced fumbles, 5.0 sacks, and eight QB hits. The Steelers' newest acquisition has a total of 13 sacks over the past two seasons, across a span of 30 games.
Reed figures to serve as a depth piece for the Steelers in 2022, most likely lining up behind the likes of TJ Watt and Alex Highsmith on the depth chart, capable of slotting in at either outside linebacker position.
Considering all they had to cough up was a late-round compensatory pick, this looks like something of a steal for the Steelers, who were in need of a solid backup for Watt and Highsmith. Reed was expected to be relegated to a backup role in Denver amid the acquisition of Randy Gregory in the offseason.
The 26-year-old linebacker played his college ball at Nevada, where he spent four seasons. Across 134 games, Reed recorded 22.0 sacks, 38.5 tackles for loss, 203 tackles, and 11 forced fumbles. He went undrafted in 2018 before latching on with the Broncos in 2019.
In 2022, Reed will earn $2.433 million in base salary with the Steelers before being eligible for free agency in 2023.
