The league year kicked off on Wednesday afternoon, March 11. And the Pittsburgh Steelers, now under head coach Mike McCarthy, didn’t waste much time getting to work. Within hours, the team quietly added two pieces ahead of the 2026 season. One on special teams and the other on the offensive line.

According to reports, Pittsburgh signed punter Cameron Johnston and offensive tackle Jack Driscoll.

Starting with Johnston. The Steelers brought the veteran punter back on a one-year deal. The financial terms haven’t been disclosed yet, but what stands out here is that this marks Johnston’s second stint in Pittsburgh.

The 34-year-old originally signed with the Steelers ahead of the 2024 season on a three-year, $9 million deal. That partnership, however, never really got going the way either side hoped. Johnston appeared in just one regular-season game in 2024 before suffering a gruesome season-ending injury.

He did manage to return for training camp ahead of the 2025 season. But by that time, the situation had changed. Corliss Waitman ended up winning the punting job, leaving Johnston without a role in Pittsburgh.

From there, his 2025 season turned into a short tour around the league.

Johnston first landed with the Buffalo Bills, where he recorded seven punts with a 44-yard average. Once Buffalo moved on, he later spent time with the New York Giants, punting four times for a 45.5-yard average. In total, he appeared in four games between the two teams during the 2025 season.

Zooming out a bit, Johnston has now built an eight-year NFL career across multiple stops. He originally entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017 and spent four seasons there before moving on to the Houston Texans in 2021.

One of his most productive seasons came in Houston. During the 2021 campaign, Johnston led the entire league in both punting yards (4,108) and total punts (88).

The Texans eventually moved on after the 2023 season, when Johnston initially landed in Pittsburgh. That first stint never really took off because of the injury, but after brief stops in Buffalo and New York, he now finds himself back with the Steelers. And now, he’s returning to Pittsburgh with a notable resume.

Johnston has punted 458 times for 21,622 yards, averaging 47.2 yards per punt, with a net average of 42.0 yards (19,286 net yards). Over that span, he has pinned 185 punts inside the 20-yard line, including 67 inside the 10. He also recorded at least one punt of 60 or more yards in each of his first six NFL seasons.

And the timing is interesting.

Waitman, who took over the punting duties last season, is currently a free agent. Since replacing Johnston, Waitman averaged 46.1 yards per punt across 35 games for the Steelers, including the postseason. Still, with Waitman unsigned and Johnston back in the building, it’s fair to assume the veteran will have a real shot at reclaiming the job heading into the 2026 season.

At the same time, Pittsburgh also addressed another area of need on the roster: The offensive line.

Ahead of the new league year, the Steelers were lacking depth on the offensive line. And while the unit is still thin with just seven linemen on the roster so far, the team has brought back a familiar face to help ease that concern. On Wednesday, the franchise signed offensive tackle Jack Driscoll to a one-year contract.

While Pittsburgh did not disclose the financial terms of the deal, the move confirms they have retained their offensive tackle ahead of the 2026 season. Driscoll first joined the Steelers on their practice squad this past October. The team later elevated him to the active roster for the regular-season finale against the Baltimore Ravens, though he did not receive an opportunity to start.

Fast forward to now, and he returns with a one-year deal in hand. A former fourth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Driscoll has appeared in 67 games across his career, including 18 starts.

That said, the Steelers have now addressed key decisions on special teams and along the offensive line. The one position that still remains uncertain, however, is quarterback. For now, Pittsburgh continues to wait on Aaron Rodgers’ decision regarding the 2026 season.

The Steelers get an update on Aaron Rodgers’ future

Quarterback has been a major headache for the Steelers. It has been for years. And this season is no different. Following his first year in Pittsburgh, Aaron Rodgers has yet to decide whether he wants to return for another season. Still, despite the uncertainty around life without Rodgers, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Steelers remain optimistic he will eventually come back.

“I would think that (the Steelers) want (Rodgers) to return. They’ve been open about wanting him to return,” Schefter said. “Everybody on the team, the players, has wanted him back…They’re hopeful and optimistic that he will come back.”

In a what-if scenario, if that optimism turns out to be right, the Steelers would suddenly have clarity at quarterback. Rodgers would run the offense under his former head coach, Mike McCarthy, and Steelers Nation would be hoping that pairing finally delivers a playoff win, something the franchise has been waiting on for nearly a decade now.

But if Rodgers decides not to return, Pittsburgh will have to deal with the situation quickly. At the moment, the team has Will Howard and Mason Rudolph on the roster. And according to Schefter, if Rodgers walks away, the Steelers may simply pivot to one of those two options.

“[The Steelers] are hoping Aaron Rodgers comes back, and if he doesn’t, they would then be prepared to have Will Howard and Mason Rudolph on the roster,” he added. “It’s the reason that I think they don’t feel rushed and compelled to go out and add anybody right now.”

Looking at the bigger picture, it all comes down to Rodgers and what he decides ahead of the 2026 season. The Steelers may feel optimistic about their chances, but ultimately, the decision rests with Rodgers and whether he feels the same way about returning to Pittsburgh.