The Steelers changed their roster Tuesday, claiming rookie punter Aidan Laros off waivers and waiving receiver Brandon Johnson in the same move. Laros now joins Cameron Johnston as the only punters on Pittsburgh’s 90-man roster.
That is the reason the move is drawing attention now: it directly alters the team’s camp competition and gives the Steelers a second punter heading toward training camp next month. Cameron Johnston was signed in March to be Pittsburgh’s punter this season, but Laros has now been added to the mix after the Buccaneers let him go.
Laros arrives as an undrafted rookie out of Kentucky, where he handled punts and kickoffs over two seasons after transferring from Tennessee-Martin. He averaged 44.9 yards per punt as a senior in 2025, and the Steelers are carrying him on a roster that is still being shaped before camp opens.
Johnson’s exit carries its own weight. He was in his third stint with the Steelers, with those stretches coming during parts of 2024, 2025 and 2026, and his only NFL action since his Denver Broncos tenure came in Pittsburgh. He appeared in three regular-season games for the Steelers, all in 2024, and finished that run with one reception for 9 yards.
That limited usage stands in contrast to his first stop in Denver, where Johnson played 20 games over his first two seasons in 2022 and 2023 and produced 25 catches for 326 yards and five touchdowns. He will be 28 by the time Steelers training camp opens next month, and the waiver move closes another short chapter with the organization.
The more immediate question is not whether Pittsburgh has room for another punter; it does. The question is whether Laros is competing only for camp work or whether the Steelers are already setting up a real decision against Johnston before the regular season begins.
