Veterans, undrafted free agents have something to prove
Prior to being selected by the 49ers in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Trey Sermon vividly remembers the pre-draft conversations he had with the Steelers, who were in need of running back help at the time. Those discussions went so smoothly that Sermon felt as if there was a good chance he might end up in a Steelers uniform.
"I talked to them throughout the whole process quite a bit and met with them at the combine," Sermon said prior to breaking out a smile following workouts on the second day of rookie minicamp this morning. "I definitely thought they were going to draft me."
The Steelers ended up going in a different direction, selecting NajeeHarris in the first round and relying on him as one of their top backfield options for the next four seasons.
Meanwhile, it's been quite the journey for Sermon. He's played in 42 career games, rushing for over 500 yards and three touchdowns, for three different teams -- the 49ers, Eagles and Colts -- over the last four seasons. He's never been a consistent star in either of the three backfields he's appeared in, but he's shown glimpses of productivity.
Now, four years after he envisioned himself getting that draft call from the Steelers, everything seems to be coming full circle. Sermon has an opportunity to once again show the team what he can do, as he's been invited to take part in rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.
The Steelers already have plenty of familiarity with Sermon, not only because of the interactions they had and what they saw from him prior to the draft four years ago, but also because of what he did to them while with the Colts back in 2023. During a Week 15 game on Dec. 16, Sermon put together one of the best performances of his NFL career against the Steelers, carrying the ball 17 times for 88 yards. He fell just one short of his career high set back in October of his rookie season.
"They brought it up the first day, but just trying to take advantage of the opportunities I was given then," said Sermon, who is one of four players with more than three years of NFL experience trying out for the team. "I'm glad to be here."
Sermon's NFL career hasn't been linear. There have been ups and downs, but he's learned the importance of staying ready and taking advantage of every opportunity, including the one right in front of him.
"It's definitely been a journey and a process," Sermon said. "But over the years, I just learned to embrace it, put my best foot forward and go to work every day."
Sermon said his mindset is on doing whatever it takes to make the team. But he's also more than willing to share the knowledge he's gained over the course of his NFL career with younger running backs like MaxHurleman, an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame, and KalebJohnson, the Steelers' third-round pick in this year's draft, who Sermon described as a high-energy guy who is going to be "very special."
"Being a couple years in and being a vet, I feel like it's only right to give a little insight to the younger guys, the younger running backs," Sermon said. "It'll only make them better and it'll only make myself better. We're competing, but we're learning from each other. I definitely take it upon myself to be that vet in the room to help those guys out."
While Sermon is putting in the work to open some eyes and prove his value, so are a handful of undrafted free agents and rookies looking to make their mark as tryout players. A total of 25 players fall into that latter category, while 15 rookies and five veterans already signed to contracts with the team are also participating in the three-day minicamp.
“There’s usually an element of their game that’s varsity. Meaning, if you go undrafted, there’s components to your game certainly that needs work. But those that make it usually have an element of their game that’s ready, and they find ways to lean on that and minimize some of the things, or work on some of the things that aren’t," MikeTomlin said. "That’s probably the common bond, based on my experience of all the undrafted that come through the other side, they usually have a trait, and that trait shows up rather consistently.”
RocTaylor, a former Memphis standout who became just the fifth 1,000-yard receiver in program history in 2023, went undrafted and is signed to a contract, but still trying to learn and improve as he goes.
"It's been a process, but a good one," Taylor said. "Trying to pick up what they're putting down, and what they put out, trying to perform it."
Taylor's focused on his own progress, but he also displayed a willingness to help a fellow receiver following this morning's workouts, spending extra time working with HollisMathis, a Pittsburgh native and former William & Mary athlete, who is with the team on a tryout basis. Mathis did it all as a collegiate performer, becoming just the second player in the history of college football to total 1,000 yards passing, receiving and rushing in his career. Now, he's looking to make it at the professional level as a receiver.
"I don't really care about the aesthetics or the show of it all, I'm honestly completely bought into getting better," Mathis said. "Roc is an unbelievable receiver and I've noticed that he's really good at the craft. We were able to build a relationship and I wanted to see if he could help me out with some stuff. If we could have done it in the locker room away from everybody's eyes, we would have, but just not enough space. We just wanted to get some extra reps and Roc's a great guy, so he's helping me out trying to help me get better."
The Steelers have a history of undrafted players earning opportunities and thriving at the NFL level. JaylenWarren and BeanieBishop are their most recent success stories, but the list includes the likes of DonnieShell, RamonFoster, MikeHilton, Willie Parker and JamesHarrison, arguably one of the best undrafted free agent signings in NFL history.
It's not easy to go from being a longshot to make an NFL roster to reaching the level of success some of the guys on that list have achieved. But it's not impossible.
"I could be one of those guys, too," Taylor said. "I'm just working hard to try and fulfill my role."
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
THE ASYLUM
José Negron
6:38 pm - 05.10.2025South SideVeterans, undrafted free agents have something to prove
Prior to being selected by the 49ers in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Trey Sermon vividly remembers the pre-draft conversations he had with the Steelers, who were in need of running back help at the time. Those discussions went so smoothly that Sermon felt as if there was a good chance he might end up in a Steelers uniform.
"I talked to them throughout the whole process quite a bit and met with them at the combine," Sermon said prior to breaking out a smile following workouts on the second day of rookie minicamp this morning. "I definitely thought they were going to draft me."
The Steelers ended up going in a different direction, selecting Najee Harris in the first round and relying on him as one of their top backfield options for the next four seasons.
Meanwhile, it's been quite the journey for Sermon. He's played in 42 career games, rushing for over 500 yards and three touchdowns, for three different teams -- the 49ers, Eagles and Colts -- over the last four seasons. He's never been a consistent star in either of the three backfields he's appeared in, but he's shown glimpses of productivity.
Now, four years after he envisioned himself getting that draft call from the Steelers, everything seems to be coming full circle. Sermon has an opportunity to once again show the team what he can do, as he's been invited to take part in rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.
The Steelers already have plenty of familiarity with Sermon, not only because of the interactions they had and what they saw from him prior to the draft four years ago, but also because of what he did to them while with the Colts back in 2023. During a Week 15 game on Dec. 16, Sermon put together one of the best performances of his NFL career against the Steelers, carrying the ball 17 times for 88 yards. He fell just one short of his career high set back in October of his rookie season.
"They brought it up the first day, but just trying to take advantage of the opportunities I was given then," said Sermon, who is one of four players with more than three years of NFL experience trying out for the team. "I'm glad to be here."
Sermon's NFL career hasn't been linear. There have been ups and downs, but he's learned the importance of staying ready and taking advantage of every opportunity, including the one right in front of him.
"It's definitely been a journey and a process," Sermon said. "But over the years, I just learned to embrace it, put my best foot forward and go to work every day."
Sermon said his mindset is on doing whatever it takes to make the team. But he's also more than willing to share the knowledge he's gained over the course of his NFL career with younger running backs like Max Hurleman, an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame, and Kaleb Johnson, the Steelers' third-round pick in this year's draft, who Sermon described as a high-energy guy who is going to be "very special."
"Being a couple years in and being a vet, I feel like it's only right to give a little insight to the younger guys, the younger running backs," Sermon said. "It'll only make them better and it'll only make myself better. We're competing, but we're learning from each other. I definitely take it upon myself to be that vet in the room to help those guys out."
While Sermon is putting in the work to open some eyes and prove his value, so are a handful of undrafted free agents and rookies looking to make their mark as tryout players. A total of 25 players fall into that latter category, while 15 rookies and five veterans already signed to contracts with the team are also participating in the three-day minicamp.
“There’s usually an element of their game that’s varsity. Meaning, if you go undrafted, there’s components to your game certainly that needs work. But those that make it usually have an element of their game that’s ready, and they find ways to lean on that and minimize some of the things, or work on some of the things that aren’t," Mike Tomlin said. "That’s probably the common bond, based on my experience of all the undrafted that come through the other side, they usually have a trait, and that trait shows up rather consistently.”
Roc Taylor, a former Memphis standout who became just the fifth 1,000-yard receiver in program history in 2023, went undrafted and is signed to a contract, but still trying to learn and improve as he goes.
"It's been a process, but a good one," Taylor said. "Trying to pick up what they're putting down, and what they put out, trying to perform it."
Taylor's focused on his own progress, but he also displayed a willingness to help a fellow receiver following this morning's workouts, spending extra time working with Hollis Mathis, a Pittsburgh native and former William & Mary athlete, who is with the team on a tryout basis. Mathis did it all as a collegiate performer, becoming just the second player in the history of college football to total 1,000 yards passing, receiving and rushing in his career. Now, he's looking to make it at the professional level as a receiver.
"I don't really care about the aesthetics or the show of it all, I'm honestly completely bought into getting better," Mathis said. "Roc is an unbelievable receiver and I've noticed that he's really good at the craft. We were able to build a relationship and I wanted to see if he could help me out with some stuff. If we could have done it in the locker room away from everybody's eyes, we would have, but just not enough space. We just wanted to get some extra reps and Roc's a great guy, so he's helping me out trying to help me get better."
The Steelers have a history of undrafted players earning opportunities and thriving at the NFL level. Jaylen Warren and Beanie Bishop are their most recent success stories, but the list includes the likes of Donnie Shell, Ramon Foster, Mike Hilton, Willie Parker and James Harrison, arguably one of the best undrafted free agent signings in NFL history.
It's not easy to go from being a longshot to make an NFL roster to reaching the level of success some of the guys on that list have achieved. But it's not impossible.
"I could be one of those guys, too," Taylor said. "I'm just working hard to try and fulfill my role."
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
We’d love to have you!