PITTSBURGH --Pittsburgh Steelers rookie tight end JJ Galbreath is impressing his teammates early on at OTAs. When Donald Parham went down, Galbreath was someone who stepped up with more chances, and proved he deserved those opportunities.
Rookie quarterback Will Howard has been impressed by Galbreath, and says he has been feeding the rookie early on in OTAs.
“That’s the guy, man,” Howard said. “We’ve been doing a lot of work, us rookies, off to the side and walking through stuff after practice. Every rep that we don’t get we make sure we bang those out. Shoot, JJ’s been open for me.”
Despite standing at just 6-foot-3, 231 pounds, Galbreath ran a 4.67 40-yard dash and his explosion drills were impressive, too. He had a 38-inch vertical and 10-foot-3-inch broad jump. Even his agilities were great, as Galbreath posted a 4.20 short shuttle and 6.02 3-cone.
He played through a nagging shoulder injury in 2024, but still posted 469 yards on 32 receptions. His best season statistically came in 2023, where he had 579 receiving yards on 36 receptions with five touchdowns.
A native of Arvada, Colorado, Galbreath is a move tight end that slots in more as a receiver than a blocker. Pittsburgh can use his speed as a mismatch potential up the seam in the offense.
The Steelers have allotted more money to their undrafted free agent pool this year, and Galbreath is one of the clear indications of that shift in the team’s philosophy at large.