The Steelers’ final roster trim on Sunday came with the kind of hard choices that always leave a few names stuck in the middle. Pittsburgh had to get down to 53 players by the 6 p.m. ET deadline, and while the decision to keep four quarterbacks grabbed most of the attention, the backfield picture produced one of the stranger twists of the day.
Hours before the deadline, general manager Omar Khan sent Kaleb Johnson to the Green Bay Packers. With the 2025 third-round pick gone, Lew Nichols looked like he had a real lane to stick. Instead, when the cuts were finalized, Nichols was one of the players left out.
He wasn’t alone. Travis Homer also missed the team, while Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle were the obvious locks. The surprise came with Pittsburgh keeping rookie Eli Heidenreich as the third running back on the 53-man roster.
It’s a tough ending for Nichols, especially after another strong preseason showing. He was one of the bright spots in the Steelers’ 2026 preseason, and he was also among the standout performers in the 2025 preseason. Even with a new coaching staff in place this summer, Mike McCarthy and his staff still opted to move in another direction.
Nichols’ numbers backed up the case for a roster spot. Last preseason, he ran 11 times for 87 yards, a 7.9 yards-per-carry average, and added five catches for 36 yards. This August, he finished with 87 yards on 20 carries, scored a rushing touchdown, and also had another rushing score wiped out by a holding penalty.
The production matched what showed up on film. Nichols brought quick feet, good vision and the kind of downhill burst that lets a back attack the hole instead of waiting on it. He also flashed in pass protection, another small but important piece of the puzzle.
Still, none of that was enough to get him through cutdown day. Nichols may have looked like one of the top 53 players on the Steelers’ 90-man summer roster, but in the end he was the odd man out.
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For now, though, Porter remains unsigned while the cornerback market keeps moving around him, and Pittsburgh is in no rush to change its approach. The club still holds plenty of leverage in the talks, including the option to use the franchise tag next offseason, which gives the Steelers time even if the sides do not find common ground anytime soon. [Read more 🡒]