Scobee released; Boswell signed
PITTSBURGH – The Steelers decided Josh Scobee wouldn’t do as their placekicker and signed untested Chris Boswell following a three-player tryout Saturday.
Boswell, 24, will be the Steelers’ fourth placekicker this season.
The move to replace Scobee came after the 12-year veteran missed field goal attempts from 41 and 49 yards in the final three minutes of regulation in the Steelers’ 23-20 overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens Thursday night at Heinz Field.
The misses were the final straw for Scobee with the Steelers. Counting the preseason, Scobee was just 12 of 17 on field goal attempts and extra points.
Scobee was acquired from Jacksonville for a sixth-round draft pick after incumbent Shaun Suisham and Garrett Hartley were injured in the preseason. Scobee, 32, came to the Steelers as the Jaguars’ all-time leading scorer.
Scobee had a salary of $3.5 million this season but the Steelers got Jacksonville to pick up nearly $1 million. But as a vested veteran, since he was on the Steelers’ roster in Week 1, he is due the entire $2.5 million remaining on his contract. Coupled with the $2.1-million cap hit the Steelers must take for Suisham and the $585,000 for Hartley counts against their cap, the Steelers have more than $5 million in cap space tied up in kickers this season.
Boswell, who signed a two-year deal with the Steelers, played collegiately at Rice and spent time with both Houston and the New York Giants. He has never attempted a regular-season field goal in the NFL.
He did make both of his attempts – from 33 and 44 yards – in the preseason in 2014 for Houston and had two touchbacks on 10 kickoffs. He was released at the end of training camp that year but spent part of the season on the Texans’ practice squad.
He made all four of his field goal attempts for the Giants in the preseason last month.
Boswell has a strong leg, making 13 field goals from beyond 50 yards in three seasons at Rice, where he was 51 of 67 overall field goal attempts. Six of his misses came in his freshman season.
He also punted at Rice, averaging 40.3 yards on 15 attempts.
The Steelers also had former Redskins kicker Kai Forbath and Randy Bullock, who was recently cut by Houston, in for the tryout Saturday at Heinz Field.
The Steelers are off today but will return to practice Monday, when second-year receiver Martavis Bryant is expected to practice for the first time since his 4-game suspension for violation of the NFL substance abuse policy ends. … Linebacker Lawrence Timmons’ 11 tackles Thursday against the Ravens marked his 34th career double-digit tackle game. Defensive end Stephon Tuitt had 10 tackles, a career-high.