The Pittsburgh Steelers continue adding players on reserve/futures contracts as they kick off their offseason.

A day after inking 13 players to futures deals, Pittsburgh circled back around and signed offensive lineman Doug Nester as well as wide receiver Brandon Smith.

Futures contracts are reserved for players who are not on a 53-man roster at the end of the regular season. Teams can sign as many players to those types of deals as they want before reaching the 90-player roster limit that is imposed at the beginning of each new league year.

Nester Returns to Pittsburgh

Nester made 52 starts during his collegiate career, which he spent between Virginia Tech and West Virginia, before entering the 2024 NFL Draft once he ran out of eligibility.

The Steelers signed him after he went undrafted, and he played a total of 85 snaps in the 2024 preseason between right tackle and special teams, per Pro Football Focus.

That wasn’t enough for him to earn a 53-man roster spot, though, and he signed to Pittsburgh’s practice squad after going unclaimed on waivers.

After spending his entire rookie season there, the Steelers signed Nester to a futures deal last January. He logged a total of 132 snaps during the preseason, with all of his offensive reps coming at left (86) and right guard (33), but he was let go before final roster cuts.

The 25-year-old later signed to Pittsburgh’s practice squad in December and remained there for the rest of the season.

WR/Special Teams Depth with Smith

Smith’s NFL career kicked off as a member of the Dallas Cowboys in 2021 after going undrafted out of Iowa.

He spent the following two seasons on the team’s practice squad without finding his way into a regular season contest.

Smith played for the XFL’s DC Defenders in the spring of 2023 and spent that year’s preseason with the Arizona Cardinals, but he did not make the team’s 53-man roster.

After a second stint with the Defenders in 2024, Smith signed with the New York Jets in August 2024. He was let go at final roster cuts, but he signed to the team’s practice squad and made his regular season debut in Week 15 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Smith signed a futures contract with the Jets last January and returned to their practice squad after being cut back in August.

He appeared in two games for New York this past season and logged a total of 21 snaps over that stretch.

Subscribe to our FREE Newsletter for the latest news and updates on the Pittsburgh Steelers

A playground popular with many children was held up by red tape for months in Pittsburgh’s Brookline neighborhood. 

It’s a story at the confluence of disappointed children, a landslide, bureaucratic molasses, and a once vibrant playground in shambles. 

Early last year, the playground at Little Village Learning Center on McNeilly Road was in a state of disrepair due to the fact that the land behind the fence was slowly but surely eroding – and did it ever. 

“It was becoming questionable and felt a little unsafe,” said Ashley Landy, owner and director of Little Village Learning Center. 

Now, it’s been going on 10 months since the kids at the learning center have been able to use the playground, and Landy said she knows what is needed. 

“Right now, we need to build a retaining wall so that we can rebuild our playground,” she said. 

As the kids go about their daily routines, confined to the building, Little Village secured funding and a contractor – then last March, they reached out to the city, and that’s where things got messy. 

“[We were told] that it could take around 30 days, so our contractor was all-in and ready to go,” Landy recalled. 

So, it got fixed, right? Well, the 30 days came and went. 

“Every time we ask them about the permitting issues, they come back with another piece of paperwork that we need to submit, which takes another 45 days,” she said. 

On Wednesday morning, we reached out to the city to try to get an understanding of what was going on, and just over three hours after we reached out, Little Village Learning Center was contacted by the city and told the permit was in the final stages of processing. We also got a lengthy email explaining the process. 

For Landy, she just wants her 58 kids back on the playground. 

“It’s crucial, they love to go outside and play and run around,” she said. “For them to just get a break from the building alone and get that fresh air, it’s definitely necessary. 

Also, late on Tuesday, the center was notified that what was once an issue with the planned playground probably isn’t anymore, and more conversations on Grant Street will happen on Thursday. Landy said she hopes and would like to get the playground up and usable by early summer. 

Finally, the question is, is what happened at Little Village the exception or the rule? 

While you don’t want to call it the rule, but it is an issue. So much so that Mayor Corey O’Connor issued an executive order to take a look at and speed up the city’s permitting processes so that small businesses aren’t forced to wait months. He’s also setting up a development public liaison to serve as a point person for people who hit permitting road blocks.