Steelers Now
PITTSBURGH — With T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig both dealing with injuries and missing practice on Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Steelers hosted four edge rushers for tryouts at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.
The Steelers brought Ronnie Perkins, Isaiah Thomas, Casey Toohill and Oshane Ximines to their facility for tryouts on Wednesday afternoon.
A 6-foot-3, 253-pound St. Louis, Missouri native, Perkins, 26, was a third-round pick of the New England Patriots out of Oklahoma in 2021. He spent two seasons in New England and one with the Denver Broncos, but played in just seven career games, all with the Broncos in 2023. He recorded 13 tackles, two tackles for loss and one quarterback hit.
Perkins was released by the Broncos before the 2024 season and spent some time on the Arizona Cardinals practice squad. He played five games with the Birmingham Stallions of the UFL this spring, recording 16 tackles and 3.5 sacks before an injury ended his season. He turned the UFL performance into a training camp gig with the Atlanta Falcons and spent some time on the Falcons practice squad before being released on Sept. 9.
Thomas is familiar to both the AFC North and the Steelers’ Week 16 opponents. A seventh-round pick of the Cleveland Browns out of Oklahoma in 2022, he spent two seasons with the Cleveland, and then also spent time with the Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions.
He played 10 games with the Browns in 2022 and two games with the Lions last season, and has 12 tackles, one tackle for loss, two quarterback hits and one sack in his career. The 6-foot-5, 266-pound Tulsa native was a collegiate teammate of Perkins at Oklahoma.
Toohill, 29, was a seventh-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020, when Andy Weidl was with he Eagles. A San Diego, California native and Stanford alumni, he spent three seasons with the Washington Commanders and played for the Buffalo Bills last season. He was released by the Houston Texans this August and has been a free agent ever since.
Toohill played in 71 games and made 15 starts over his career, with 100 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, eight sacks, 21 quarterback hits, four fumble recoveries and three passes defended. In addition to playing on defense, he has been a significant contributor on special teams, playing in over 100 snaps of in each of the last four seasons.
Ximines, 29, was a third-round pick of the New York Giants in 2019. He spent four seasons in New York and then the 2024 season with the New England Patriots before an injury ended his season last September.
Ximines played 50 games and made nine starters over his six years in the NFL, recording 72 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, 24 quarterback hits, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and six passes defended.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Steelers Host Four Veteran Edge Rushers for Tryouts
