Steelers sign two-time Super Bowl champion wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to practice squad

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling looks on before the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sept. 14, 2025, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Butch Dill, File)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers signed wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to the practice squad on Tuesday, reuniting him with former teammate Aaron Rodgers.

The well-traveled Valdes-Scantling played alongside Rodgers from 2018-21 when they were both in Green Bay.

The 31-year-old Valdes-Scantling, who won a pair of Super Bowls with Kansas City in 2022 and 2023, was most recently with the San Francisco 49ers, catching four passes for 40 yards before being released last month.

Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin downplayed Valdes-Scantling’s arrival, which came a week after reports that Valdes-Scantling’s signing was imminent, only for him to hold off while waiting for a chance to join a 53-man roster instead of taking a practice squad spot.

That opportunity did not materialize, and now Valdes-Scantling finds himself on his fifth team since 2023. His most productive stop during that stretch came in New Orleans, where averaged 22.6 yards per catch and scored four touchdowns in eight games with the Saints.

“He is a really special guy, and I think MVS can still really play,” Rodgers said last week. “You saw last year when he was in New Orleans, he had opportunities. He had a lot of big touchdowns. He can still run.”

Valdes-Scantling caught 123 passes for 2,153 yards and 13 touchdowns during his four seasons alongside Rodgers in Green Bay and has averaged 17.3 yards per reception in his career.

The Steelers are in first place in the AFC North at 5-3, but have struggled to get consistent production out of their wide receivers outside of DK Metcalf. Metcalf leads the team with 29 receptions. Their next four top pass catchers are either running backs or tight ends.