Steelers Deliver Crushing Update on Highly Touted 2024 Draft Pick That Fans Were Banking On

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced Monday they are releasing safety Ryan Watts one year and one day after selecting him in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

The Steelers announced the move on their official X (formerly Twitter) account. With the news, general manager Omar Khan also released a statement.

“Unfortunately, today we are releasing Ryan Watts from our roster,” Khan said in the statement. “After consulting with our medical team, medical experts, and Ryan’s representatives, we all agree that it is in Ryan’s best interest to discontinue playing football at this time.

“We will continue to assist and support Ryan as he transitions to the next phase of his life.”

Watts suffered a neck injury in the preseason finale against the Detroit Lions in August. The safety remained on the field for a few minutes after sustaining his injury, but he walked off the field on his own.

Steelers Depot’s Ross McCorkle described the injury in January as “scary.”

The Steelers drafted Watts at No. 195 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. The safety spent all of last season on injured reserve.

Steelers Release Safety Ryan Watts

Based on Khan’s statement, Watts may be about to retire. The bad news about his football career maybe being finished comes just three months after the safety delivered a message that he wasn’t giving up on his NFL dream.

“This has easily been one of the hardest years of my life,” Watts wrote on January 24 as a caption to a hospital bed picture in his Instagram story. “Through serious injury and all, I will remain optimistic because I can doo ALL things through HIM. Road to recovery …”

Watt’s significant other shared a post on the same day, writing that the safety was undergoing surgery.

“As I sit here reflecting in the hospital on this past year, I feel so many emotions,” she wrote. “God has had us in a waiting season and has really challenged our faith throughout this year.

“The fear of the unknown is a trick thing but one thing about this man is he is SO damn strong and hasn’t let anything get in his way.”

Watts had also previously delivered positive messages through the media.

“I am sure I will be back out there,” Watts said in November, via TribLive’s Chris Adamski. “Just have got to have a plan and a plan to be back out there as safe as possible.

“I am sure I will be back out there by next year.”

Watts played college football at Ohio State and Texas. In 2023, he posted 38 combined tackles, including one tackle for loss and three pass defenses.

His best statistical season came with the Longhorns in 2022. During that season, Watts had 51 combined tackles, including four tackles for loss and three pass defenses. He also had one interception and one sack.

Steelers Safety Depth Entering Offseason Workouts

Pittsburgh will return both of its starting safeties — Minkah Fitzpatrick and DeShon Elliott — in 2025. The Steelers, though, didn’t bring back veteran No. 3 safety Damontae Kazee.

With that decision, pundits hoped that was a sign Watts was ready to compete for a role on Pittsburgh’s defense this year. But clearly, that won’t be the case.

Kazee is still available if the Steelers want him to return. But the Steelers did sign veteran safety Juan Thornhill to a one-year, $3 million contract this offseason.

Pittsburgh also added safety Joshuah Bledsoe on a reserve/future contract in January. The Steelers still have veteran Miles Killebrew as well, but Killebrew is more of a special teams ace.