While the Pittsburgh Steelers won’t play inside a stadium until the preseason returns in August, several former players have spent the spring thriving in the UFL. With the regular season wrapping up today, a handful of players on offense, defense, and special teams made an impact over the past ten weeks.
Several running backs were starters or in committee approaches. Kalen Ballage averaged nearly 11 rushes per game for the Arlington Renegades and a healthy 4.7 yards per carry mark. He finished the year with 306 yards and a pair of scores, highlighted by a 110-yard performance in the season opener against San Antonio. Unfortunately, he suffered a shoulder injury in Week 9, missing today’s finale. Anthony McFarland spent another spring in the UFL, carrying the ball just 40 time but for an ultra-efficient 6.2-yards per carry for the San Antonio Brahmas.
Ballage’s last NFL regular season appearance came with the Steelers in 2021, carrying the ball 12 times for 36-yards. The majority of his playing time came on special teams. A star at Arizona State who once scored seven touchdowns in one game, Ballage turns 30 this December. If there’s a chance to get back into the NFL, this is it. Hopefully, his shoulder injury doesn’t derail those hopes.
McFarland was selected in the fourth round by the Steelers but never panned out and battled injuries.
Receivers to make their mark include Deon Cain, one of the stars of the spring for the Birmingham Stallions. Cain didn’t have high volume with just 27 receptions but averaged over 18-yards per reception and finished second in the league with six touchdowns. As of this writing, he’s playing through his regular season finale against the Memphis Showboats.
One-time preseason star Tyler Vaughns notched 41 catches for the Renegades, fourth-best entering the final day of the regular season. Sunday, he caught three passes for 24 yards as the Renegades comfortably beat the Brahmas 23-6. And in the return game, former camp receiver Mathew Sexton had the league’s only punt return touchdown of the season, an 83-yard score against the D.C. Defenders. Hakeem Butler has struggled to find NFL footing but continues to make plays in the feeder leagues, catching only 13 passes but for a gaudy 300 yards with the St. Louis Battlehawks. He also scored four times.
Of the four, Cain is the only one to catch a pass with Pittsburgh. Signed in 2019 when injuries racked up, he snagged five receptions for 72 yards. He appeared in two games the following year but didn’t register a reception.
As we noted last month, former starting offensive tackle Zach Banner made his return to professional football and started throughout the year. Now, we’ll see if he can make it back to the NFL. A reunion with the still tackle-needy Steelers could make sense.
Defensively, there’s been several notable performances. Safety Jalen Elliott ranked top-15 across the league with 48 tackles and picked off a pair of passes. Former outside linebacker Jamir Jones picked up 3.5 sacks while former first-rounder Taco Charlton registered 2.5. Former seventh-round pick defensive tackle Carlos Davis had a pair. Safety Kameron Kelly intercepted two passes for the Battlehawks.
All four spent some level of regular season action with the team. Elliott appeared in a pair of games after being a surprise inclusion to the team’s initial 53-man roster but failed to record a tackle and was released early in the season. Jones once went from camp longshot to making the 2021 roster and later won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams. Charlton was signed to help replace T.J. Watt in 2021 but recorded only a half-sack across 11 games. And Kelly appeared in 14 games for the Steelers in 2019, intercepting one pass.
There were even special teams notables. Kickers Matthew McCrane and B.T. Potter earned jobs while Brad Wing snagged one at punter. McCrane made 14-of-20 field goals for the Defenders while Potter hit 11-of-16 attempts for the Michigan Panthers. Wing led the UFL in punting average at 48.2 yards.
McCrane made one Steelers’ appearance, filling in for Chris Boswell in a 2018 game against the Cincinnati Bengals, making three kicks in a three-point win. Potter signed as an undrafted free agent in 2023 but failed to make the team. Wing had two stints punting for Pittsburgh in 2014 and again in 2023, replacing Pressley Harvin III for a pair of games.
The UFL playoffs begin next weekend with the championship game held mid-June. All these former Steelers will try to latch on with an NFL team for training camp.
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